Champuru Flower
by Middle of Mae
Summary: Neither red nor "Samurai" meant anything to her anymore. Red had become just a colour that people wore. A Samurai was just another person. The bounty on her head long forgotten, or rather no one was looking. 2 1\2 years of silence, of peace. However, Fuu always has had a bad habit of being at the wrong place at the wrong time.
1. Prologue

**Prologue - Quick Beginnings**

Heavy drops of sweat ran down the contours of her face. Following the ridge of her nose to continue to be pulled down by gravity. Each bag seemed heavier than the last despite them all being the same size. Perhaps it wasn't the bags getting heavier but her arms getting weaker with each one moved and stacked. Waitressing had its perks but money talks- this was a fact she couldn't deny. She had managed to talk her way into a part time job at a large inn on the outskirts of Osaka. Business was booming all over Osaka and Kyoto, the production of fine silks, cottons and even sake brewing was bringing in all kinds of people. And money always followed.

Standing up straight she followed the lines of her tiny waist to her back and stretched-trying to pop whatever tension this job created. After feeling her back crack up to her shoulders she was satisfied. Looking at the sacks of neatly stacked rice she was happy with her quick work. She remembered the look on the Inn owner's face when she came about a job. They were quick to tell her that they had all the house keepers they needed but she explained that she was their for their other listing.

* * *

 _"I don't think you're quite we're looking for..." The middle aged man's face seemed regretful yet hesitant. He had been looking for someone for quite some time now but no one seemed interested in carrying supplies in and out of the cold and dirty room. "We need someone with a bit more-"_

 _"Please Ojii-san! I'm quite strong despite my size! Trust me!" She said this all while rolling up her sleeve and flexing what she considered an impressive bicep._

 _"I-I'm sorry but-"_

 _"How about you let me work for a day, then you decide! If I don't do a good job you don't have to pay me or hire me." Clasping her hands together she looked to the man with pleading eyes. She pouted out her lip ever so slightly while holding her breath. She wanted this job, away from the public, away from any crude or demanding comments._

 _Rubbing the back of his neck the man considered it. If she did do a good job then he would have the help he needed, and if she didn't then he got free labour for a day._

 _"Fine. But if you break or ruin anything you have to pay for it."_

 _An honest smile grew on her face as she bowed as deeply as she could. "Thank you! I'll be in your care."_

 _"Here, come and I'll show you the basics. Erm... what was your name again?"_

 _"It's Fuu."_

* * *

Her kimono sleeves fell free once again when she untied the tasuki. She knew she would be sore tomorrow- there were more sacks of rice than there usually was. And she had helped haul in the newly cleaned futons earlier. It wasn't part of the job description but she was willing to help out in any way she could. After all if was the least she could do considering she usually showed up early. She's only had this job for about 5 weeks now, and truth be told, she really didn't need it or the money it offered. During morning hours she worked at a small tea shop. Business was slow, and tips were scarce but it paid enough for her to live. Full day shifts were offered to her- from day light to closing. But she learned her lesson about what kind of men tended to come out in the evenings. Not that much could scare her now but now she was alone. She didn't have the help of her two frien...bodyguards. If the world decided to throw trouble her way she most likely wouldn't be able to fight it off herself- at least not for long. So working in the back of an Inn away from the guests was good easy money. It was a more physical job than what she was use to but it kept her busy, kept her mind from wandering the way it used to. She found it difficult to sit around doing nothing, to return to her small rented room at the end of every day.

With a crack of her neck she hung up the tasuki on a small hook next to the door. Mr. Terazawa stumbled in just as she was about to walk out. The middle aged Inn owner was a kind man but he always seemed so frantic. Never taking a break, and never late for anything- there was a reason this Inn was so popular. Despite all his drive was nothing but ordinary, he stood at a mere 5"5, slightly balding but that was to be expected at his age. The only "stand out" thing about him was his glasses. They somehow hung low on his nose, two small prescription cylinders pinched tight enough to hold on. In order to look through them he would tilt his head up while looking down through the lenses- or on some occasions he would take them off and hold them in front of his eyes. His wife also worked at the Inn, she worked the front desk- she was quite outspoken. At first Fuu thought she was rude, and that was a push over- but in reality they balanced each other. Her harsh tones and zero bullshit tolerance level seemed to mesh well with 's gentle nature. It was a shame they never had any children, or perhaps it was for the best. She couldn't imagine them being able to run such a large business with children running around.

He seemed to inspect the newly stacked sacks of rice, counting each one and quickly inspecting them to make sure there weren't any visible holes or wet spots. Happy with his inspection he smiled and patted the top sack a couple times.

"Well Miss Fuu, here's this weeks pay." Handing her a small pouch of coins Fuu gladly accepted it along with a few pats on the shoulder. Similar to what he had done to the sacks.

Accepting her payment she thanked her employer and left through the back door like always. She made sure to securely hide her weekly pay deep in her kimono sleeve. Despite how busy the Inn was, the back never saw much foot traffic. Perhaps because the land behind had been cleared into flat even ground with nothing but a small road for the supplies wagons to drop off goods. It seemed no one but her and the suppliers used it, which was fine. It stretched out on its own for about 20 minutes (20 minutes of Fuu's foot pace anyway), before it reconnected with any other roads. It would take another 15 minutes before she would enter Osaka. As soon as you entered the city things were in full roar. There were always people coming and going, which was nice. She could never get use to pure silence unless there was a task at hand. Lanterns glowed off of every building, lighting up the streets and the people on them.

Weaving her way through the crowds of people, she got closer and closer to the shop at which she worked in the mornings. The owners of the teahouse also owned a small building that was connected at the back- that was where they lived and were the room that Fuu rented was. During store hours the "house" was locked, so the only way to get in was by walking through the shop itself. Not that she minded, she liked to check in on the couple before she headed off to bed. It was like saying "I'm home!" to what was really a lonely life. Other than her employers at both jobs and the odd run in with a coworker, she had no one else in her life. Walking through the small cloth in the doorway she was met with happy smiles from some regulars that seemed to straggle the entire day. It was a slow night it seemed, apart from the regulars there was 2 other tables with people. 1 table with 2 young couples and the other with 4 aging men who seemed to be enjoying sake and some jokes. Passing all the tables she went straight for the back into the kitchen that ultimately lead to the secondary door for her housing. She couldn't help but smile at the young couples who appeared to be on a group date. They seemed to be happy, a young girl holding onto the arm of her boyfriend in a crimson red yukata.

A year ago she would have stopped and stared at the sight of someone in red. In hopes that it was topped with a mop of unruly hair; that a tanned, scar riddled face would turn to insult her. And yet she knew she would laugh. But, that was never the case. Now red was just a colour people wore, it was a colour no different than any other. It's funny how things change, how people change. She was so immature, so naive- to expect to see either of them again. That day when they each took their own path she knew what it meant. She was prepared to travel alone, to god knows where to do god knows what.

At first she shyed from the major cities, with a price on her head from the shogunate and debt collectors from the brothel she escaped from there was no telling who was looking for her. But after time she realized without the two men at her side she blended in to the crowd. Her bright pink kimono and chop stick hair made her look like any other 15 year old girl. There wasn't a stern, proper and yet handsome samurai by her side. Nor was there the loud mouthed yankee with a red haori by her side. She never did anything note worthy to draw attention to herself unlike certain people had. Soon the sounds of katanas being drawn and people yelling to hault no longer bothered her- because it didn't concern her. She even folded and retired her pink kimono, not because she was brushing the past away completely but because it was time. The pink wasn't so bright anymore, it had been patched and resewn so many times it dawned a new pattern all together. But it wasn't just that, it began to get a little too short, a little too tight in certain places and as people grow, so do their tastes. Sure she was a little sad when she put the folded kimono away in a box, tucked away to collect dust, but at the end of the day it was just material.

While shopping for a new one she considered all kinds of colours, a dusty blue, emerald green, a subtle purple but she was always coming back to the same thing she had to put behind her. Pink.

* * *

 _It wasn't as bright or as "loud" as the old one, it was pale in colour; if dust was pink this is what it would look like. It had small lillies and petals cascading down it- unlike the large flowers she was use to. The lillies seemed silver, but at closer inspection it was like they had a purple tinge to them. Stemming from each lilly were small "pinstripe" lines that flowed to one another, like they were dancing effortlessly in the wind. It was a good thing she had cheap rent because this new kimono sure wasn't. Normally she would have attempted to barter but the worker at the counter was some bag with a pernament scowel- today wasn't the day to try anything. But when she got back to her small room she was happy to see that it fit her perfectly. The "dancing lines" followed her developing curves nicely, and colour complimented her pale skin. Adorned with the yellow obi that the store owner reccomended Fuu couldn't be happier. 'Yellow like sunflowers...' she smiled to herself running her hands over the new material. It was years since she had something new to wear. Her mother purchased her old one when she turned 13. Other than getting taller, and a little gangly she hadn't done much growing, not until she had turned 16 that is. Slowly her body started to fill in, having to add extra bandaging to her chest wrap to keep herself comfortable and in place. She started to feel the way her hips moved when she walked, the natural sway of a woman_.

* * *

Remembering that day made her realize even more how much time had really passed. Falling onto her futon with a sigh of relief she stared at the wooden grained ceiling. It had been a year since then, she was already 17, going on 18 in no time. Almost 3 years since she first set off on her life changing advernture. She had changed a lot, at least she liked to think so. 'I wonder how much they've changed...I bet Jin is the exact same.' She giggled at the notion of the samurai making any changes, maybe getting a new kimono but that's it. But Mugen... 'Mugen...he's probably wearing the same tattered, blood stained clothing he was the day we met. He probably hasn't bothered to get a hair cut.' Furrowing her brows and hugging her blanket she rolled over on her futon in a huff of frustration. This was why she got an evening job, so her mind wouldn't wander like this. It would surely be a long sleepless night now.

 **Hello there, this is my first published "Story" here. It isn't my original piece, that is for an entirely different series and has been in the process for over a year now.  
This was literally written today. I just re-lived the amazing adventure that is Samurai Champloo, it had been years since I watched it and goodness I am inspired, and I am in LOVE!  
This story will be updated whenever I feel like it, whenever a chapter is ready I will post it. But also by doing it with that method means there will most likely be many revisions and errors as well, there will probably be lots of editing and rewriting done, unless I decide to write ahead and hold off on posting (much like what I've been doing with my other story). I am still learning the formatting and configuration of this site. I mostly read from my cell phone so I'm making it more presentable on there. How this shows up on a regular computer I'm not sure. I apologize if it isn't ideal. **

**I would like to take a moment as well to explain the Title "Champuru Flower"; Champloo / Champuru means "mixed up" or "stirred together" which is how Mugen's fighting style is explained. Since his fighting style really isn't any style at all, mostly improvised, some break dancing and a whole lot of bad ass moves. And I think most of you can assume what the "Flower" in the title represents.**


	2. Chapter 1 Red is just a Colour

**I would like to state the obvious in saying that I do not own the characters of Samurai Champloo or the story, nor do I want to take credit for them. However this story is the creation of my imagination. Also I would like to point out that I am working under the assumption that the original story line was around 8 months. So I'm going off of them splitting just before Fuu's 16th birthday, which would place this one 2 1/2 years later.  
I would also like to point out that I purposely spell it "colour", it is not incorrect, it is the British spelling as opposed to the American English. **

**Thank you for reading, and enjoy!**

 **Chapter 1 - Red is a just a Colour**

Water poured rapidly into the cup, almost splashing up over the rim. Today's heat was unforgiving, which meant mouths thirst for water instead of bitter and sweet teas. Fuu twisted her hair up into a messy bun, much like she had years ago but instead of her decorative chopsticks she settled for a bamboo pair she found in the kitchen. Loose strands fell from the up-do and down onto her face and neck- sticking to her over heated and wet skin. Somehow she was still able to keep a smile on her face as she served the small crowd of people who seemed to seek refuge from the beaming sun. The old couple in the back worked in unison cooking and preparing meals. Fuu did her part by running the front, despite the fact it was unusually busy there wasn't one empty cup or plate. During the rush the clanging of empty dishes being placed on her serving trey could be heard from the street. Her tabis were clip clopped with every step she took, stretching over tables pardoning her reach but no one seemed to mind. It was too hot to care about trivial things today.

It seemed like the day stretched on forever but in reality it was nearing supper time. Which meant it was time to put away her serving tray and go to Terazawa's Inn. Today she was rotating the canned goods and dusting the shelves. Leaving the teahouse onto the busy streets of Osaka she started making her way. Her eye caught yet another young man clad in red. But her eyes did not follow- because after all, red was just a colour people wore. She was already exhausted, even though the sun already started going down the temperature felt even higher. Even the air felt hot on the lungs making each breath less than ideal. Her feet seemed to drag more with each step as the tips she made from waitressing jingled in her pocket. _'Ugh...why is it so hot out?!'_ She was looking forward to being in the storage room, it was always colder in there and there wouldn't be too much heavy lifting like there was yesterday. The busy pace at the tea house didn't allow for her sore muscles to hold her back-despite how much it pulled and hurt. Finally the Inn came into view and she veered off onto the small road that lead to the back entrance.

Upon arrival, the back door was propped open like it always was. As soon as she walked through the doorway she could already feel the difference in temperature. Fixing a loose strand of hair that fell infront of her face she grabbed the tasuki off the hook and tied it around her back and around her kimono sleeves. She thought of just making one of her own considering she used one at the teahouse and at the Inn-but hey, this worked. Looking over at the dirty dusty shelves she puffed up her cheeks and blew out an already exhausted breath- blowing the strand of hair that she's continually had to fix.

Today she didn't bother saying "hi" to Mr. or Mrs. Terazawa, she just wanted to get to work. Hopefully by the time she was done the still scortching sun would be set and she could walk home in the cool night breeze. Grabbing an empty crate she started her job, picking up the jars and "vases" from the shelf until it was empty. She knew her way around the workers back rooms considering she has helped with a little bit of everything. She filled up a bowl with hot water from the pit and found a rag. Thoroughly she started scrubbing the shelves and all the dirty jars. It was a wonder how dirty this room always was, considering how often she had to clean it. Things always seemed to be out of place even if she already organized it- but hey, she liked keeping busy.

 **Knock Knock.**

Two loud knocks from the back entrance caught her off gaurd, resulting in her dropping one of the porcelain jars she was putting back in place. **Crash**. Shattering at her feet a cold sweat dropped down her back, it was the first thing she had broken since coming here. Looking to the door Fuu was about to give whoever it was a piece of her mind but she stopped- remembering her bad habit. Her temper would get herself into trouble, or rather her loud mouth would.

A man with a cigar hanging out of his mouth was standing sluggish in the doorway. His skin was dry and cracked- old acne scars covering his cheeks and chin. His long greasy hair was tucked behind his ears and held in place with a green cotton bandana. He wore loose fitting pants and a matching haori without a shirt underneath of it. He reeked of trouble- and she wasn't naive enough to believe otherwise.

"Where's da ol' man?" Ashes dropped from his cigar when he talked. He had a funny accent, or rather a sloppy one at that.

She wasn't sure what to say. She never saw this man here before, nor did Mr. Terazawa mention him. Should she send him away or should she get Mr. Terazawa.

"Did ya hear me or are ya deaf er somtin'?" Taking a step further into the room he eyed her up multiple times. Breathing in a large amount of his cigar he puffed out the smoke like a dragon- like it was supposed to intimidate her or impress her. Either way, neither were happening.

"Yea, yea , I heard you. Just a moment please." She put on the biggest fakest smile she could. If Mr. Terazawa was expecting this man then she shouldn't piss him off- she didn't want to lose this job. Although she wasn't good at hiding the stingy tone of her voice.

"Tell 'em I'm at da wagon."

Not sure exactly who she was supposed to say was here but the crude man turned around and leaned against the small covered wagon. Watching him with corner of her eye she eventually turned around to go find Mr. Terazawa. He was most likely with his wife behind the front desk- which he was.

"Excuse me Mr. Terazawa, there is ummm...a man here to see you? He says he's waiting for you 'at da wagon'. ?" She did her best impression of the man's accent since she didn't know who he was.

Mr. Terazawa looked stunned for a moment, then nodded his head and patted his wife on the back. "Good good, thank you Fuu-chan. Umm..Hmm.." Grabbing a small book from one of the lowest nooks of the desk he then adjusted his glasses. "You can go home now, we'll see you tomorrow Fuu-chan."

"Ah, okay. Thank you." Bowing to her employers, Mr. Terazawa walked to the locked room adjacent to the front desk. She was never allowed in there- actually she had never seen anyone other than Mr and Mrs. Terazawa go in there. She found it strange though, the man was waiting at the back entrance so why wasn't he going there first? Before Fuu fully turned around to follow so she could leave she saw Mrs. Terazawa switch over the sign to "No Vacancy". Raising an eyebrow she was left to her own thoughts before going back into the supply room to hang up her tasuki. Her tabis stepped on something, reminding her of the jar she had dropped. _'I should clean this up before I go.'_ Slipping out of the room she went into the Kitchen to get a broom. In the following seconds of her being in the kitchen Mr. Terazawa walked into the supply room and out to the man and the wagon; assuming Fuu was already on her way home. Finding the small hand broom, Fuu went back into the supply room to clean up her mess. She bent down, bringing her knees to her chest and balancing on the front of her feet she started pushing the small shards into one pile. At least this way it was unlikely anyone would step on them.

Unknowing to the strange man and Mr. Terazawa, Fuu was indeed still there, Her body hidden by the bags of rice she just stacked yesterday. They started to haul in large lidded decorative vases-or that's what they appeared to be. Standing up with the dust pan of broken shards Fuu took a step back- colliding with Mr. Terazawa who dropped one of the said vases.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't know you were behind me." In a rush of embarassment Fuu turned around bowed in one rushed moment. Her face grew hot not just from the continuing daily heat but she was angry at herself. Staring down at the ground there was more than just more broken shards. There was a dark brown sold mass, and it had a sweet smell to it. _'Clay?'_ Curiously raising her eyebrows she looked up to Mr. Terazawa who's face grew red and tense. Neither said anything or moved an inch. Removing her eyes from Mr. Terazawa she looked out the door at the other man that was carrying another heavy vase in, then her eyes darted back down to the substance on the floor. Her eyes widened at the realization at what it really was. _'Opium! It's Opium!'_ Her heart raced and her eyes panicked looking around between Mr. Terazawa and the oncoming man.

"Now Fuu...there's nothing to worry about." Mr. Terazawa broke the silence, but his voice wasn't how it usually was. His expression hardened, as he took a step closer to her-stepping on a broken shard that snapped her back into reality.

It was like a gun at a starting line she made a dash for the door but was met with the other man. "OUT OF MY WAY!" She pushed through him, resulting in another broken vase, and of course spilling more opium.

"WAIT DON'T LET HER GET AWAY YUE!" It was Mr. Terazawa.

' _Ah...so that was his name. Yue.'_

Adrenaline rushing, Fuu's legs hadn't moved this fast in years. For the first time in 2 1/2 years, the shouts and threats were made at her. The hot scorching air rushed past her as she refused to look behind her. She didn't even know if they were chasing her or not. She laughed at herself internally. Of course they were chasing her, she just busted up two huge vases full of opium! She had placed herself in the middle of a drug trafficking operation- she should have just went home instead of trying to clean up her mess. She never thought Mr. Terazawa could look like that. His eyes were cold, and his voice- it was all too familiar. In the past she came across men like that all the time, but she always had two "useless" bodyguards to help her.

"Come 'er ya dumb bitch!"

Finally looking over her shoulder, that man named Yue was hardly 3 steps behind her. _'HIYAAA HE'S FAST!'_ Somehow her legs started to go even faster at the sight of a spear point dagger. "I WON'T TELL ANYONE I SWEAR!" Her voice came out a few pitches higher than it usually did. _'I_ _won't tell anyone? Ya, like they'd believe me after I started running.'_ Truth be told she didn't really care if they were selling opium or moving it around. The world was full of bad people who did bad things, she couldn't deny that but as long as they didn't involve her she didn't care. _'But well..you are involved now Fuu!'_

Faster than ever before she was back in the streets of Osaka, the man still behind her. She weaved through the crowds of people, apologizing to those she knocked over or bumped too hard into.

"Got ch'ya!"

Grabbing her by the shoulder the man spun her around. The sudden change of direction caused Fuu to stumble to the side, falling against the side of a building. With the crazed "Yue" barely focusing in her vision she saw the dagger get raised into the air. In a split second she dropped down just as it was thrust at her. Barely missing her, a few brown strands of hair fluttered down to the ground. On lookers gasped and spread away from the attempted murder. ' _Get yourself out of this mess Fuu! Get away from him!'_

Down close to the ground there was only one thing she could think of, it was especially disabling for man. With a quick and hard rabbit punch she got him between the legs. Instantly causing the man to buckle his kness, drop his weapon and collapse to the ground.

"Y-you -f-f-fuckin' bitch!" His voice was barely a whisper but she heard it loud and clear.

Grabbing his dagger she brought herself back up to her feet and made another mad dash, but this time going down back streets. But now what? Should she leave Osaka? Would that man know where to find her? _'No...but Mr. Takezawa knows I work at the teahouse!.'_ Seeing an open barrel she dropped the dagger into it then continued on her way to her other place of employment.

* * *

The sun was finally set as she peered around the corner at the teahouse. She inspected it, waiting to see if anyone or anything seemed different. She was careful for one of the first times in her life. Knowing that back door wouldn't be an option she casually walked in from the front just like she would any other night. Tables seemed to be filled like they usually would at this time- although not as busy as it was earlier. Most of the patrons at this time were men looking for a cheap sake, food and women. Two of which this teahouse offered.

"Ahh welcome back Fuu-chan. You're back earlier than usual." She was instantly greeted by the elderly woman that owned the shop. Her back hunched slightly with age but she still had some hop to her step. "It was a good thing you weren't here, there was some crude man here- I'm sure he would have-"

"Ah..good evening Oba-san. I..I'm going to go to my room. Good night."

Before any other discussion could be had she went through to the kitchen and through the door that lead into the small living quarters. Immediately she went to her room and shut it tight. She was in a scramble to pack her small tote bag, although she never had alot. Despite being settled she found herself living off of the bare minimum- never spending most of the money she earned. Her room had the odd trinket she thought was cute, then there was her futon, her old boxed up kimono, her pink tanto and of course there was Momo-san. Though these days Momo seemed to be less perky, and tended to sleep most hours.

She stuffed some extra money into her coin pouch, once again hiding it deep in her kimono sleeve. In her other sleeve she hid her tanto. "Come, Momo-san." Opening up her kimono slightly the small critter made its way inside. Having grown, there wasn't as much space for Momo like there used to be but the flying squirrel made itself comfortable. Now with her bag and Momo in tow she removed the slab of wood from the back door that fit into the grooves of the door and door jam that kept it locked. But with the tightening of her stomach she remembered something very important. She didn't want to steal anything but she really needed some food. Going back into the teahouse's kitchen she slinked into the corner. There was a bowl of sticky rice. It was good for quick orders so they made sure there was always some available. Quickly she made herself a few plain rice balls and rolled them up in bamboo leaves- stuffing them into her tote bag.

With another loud "crash", dishes broke over the ground. Gasps and a pained cry could be heard from the front of the shop. The elderly man dropped his kitchen utensils and went to the doorway to see what the comotion was.

"Wh-what are you doing to my wife?" His voice was shakey, and raspier than it usually was. Panic was consuming him.

Looking over at him Fuu saw his hands begin to tremble. Had she really taken that long to pack her things that they already found her again? She knew she shouldn't have come back, she knew she should have stayed away, or that she should have just kept running. But she didn't. She came back, she thought she had time- time to pack her things and sneak off in the night to not involve anyone else. But yet here she was, with other lives at stake.

"Imma ask ya again. Where's da bitch with the pink kimono? I know she works here!"

There was no doubt who's ugly mug went with that horrid accent. It was Yue. The old man trembled, unsure on what to do. After all his wife's life was on the line. With a tight grasp the threatening man held onto the elderly woman with a tanto blade held close to her throat. But still, he seemed hesitant to hand over Fuu and she saw this. It warmed her heart to know the old couple thought so dearly of her. Maybe that was where she went wrong- she allowed herself to stay in one place for too long, she made connections again.

"P-please sir, let go of my wife-" He managed to munster out some words. His face was deprived of all colour. He nervously swallowed the ball that was in his throat. He looked to the other customers who all seemed to be shying away from the situation, keeping their eyes low to the ground.

"Tell ya what, hand over da girl and I'll let da ol' bag live. I'll count ta 10." Yue snickered, looking at the other three men he brought with him. They all sneered and smirked back in return.

"Huh what?!" The old man looked over his shoulder towards Fuu. He was sure he had just seen her at the rice bowl. His heart sank when there was no one there- just the open door to the back quarters. Looking back to the men he held his hands up in defeat. "Please-"

"10"

"9"

"8"

"7"

"6"

"5"

The tanto blade got even closer, forcing the old woman to back herself into the man further- stretching her face up to try to distance it from herself.

"4"

"3"

"2..." A grin that only the devil could create grew on Yue's face, showing his rotten and broken teeth.

"NO PLEASE, I BEG OF YOU!" The old man threw himself down onto his knees.

Huffing once again she was out of breath from running. She hadn't had time to cool down yet so her lungs felt like they were on fire. Never in all the time of living at the teahouse did the length of the building feel this long. Picking up a rock she could hear Yue count at 2. She wound her arm back and sent the rock flying as hard as she could, surprisingly enough she had pretty good aim. It rocketed through the entrance, hitting Yue on the back of the head.

"Hey ugly! I'm out here. Buweh!" Pulling the skin below one of her eyes down she stuck out her tongue- taunting him just like a child.

"Ah that bitch!" Tossing the old woman to the side, Yue and his men turned their attention to Fuu who already started running down the street. "Afta her!"

' _Ojii-san, Oba-san. I'm sorry. Please forgive me!'_

Having quite a bit of distance between her and her pursuers she turned down a side street, hopefully she would be more evasive in the shadows. It seemed every 6 strides she was granted light from another colourful lantern. Dark, dark, dark, dark, dark, light. It was quiet around her other than the running feet. Even those around her seemed quiet in comparison. This street was unknown to her but it seemed it was filled with concession stands. Blurs of patrons sitting at the counters past her. It was like a painting melted and the colours molded together. But then there it was, there was that damned colour again.

Red.

Like a premonition of her death red consumed her mind. How was she going to outrun 4 men this time, she was lucky enough to be able to escape earlier. Deep down she knew that this night would most likely end with her blood spilled on the ground. ' _Take it easy Fuu, you won't go down that easily. Just breathe, don't look back. Keep running.'_

"Ah-ha! Got her!"

Out from a side street one of the 3 men suddenly burst out. She didn't even have time to stop or turn. Her body collided with his much larger one-wrapping his arms around her he wouldn't budge. She flailed her legs, trying to kick him but she failed.

"Let me go! Damn it! I said, LET. ME. GO!" Stomping hard, her foot hit directly on his toes. She didn't hold back at all, she was convinced she even felt a "crunch" like stepping on a bug. She was immediately thrown to the ground and it wasn't long before a foot connected with her stomach.

The force caused saliva to burst from her mouth as she yelped in pain. A geta cladded foot pushed down on her chest, pinning her down on her back. 4 sets of eyes glared down at her, the set that stood out the most were the clouded eyes of Yue. He was directly above her, with one foot pressed firm on her chest and the other next to her.

"That was som' show you put on." Pursing his lips he looked down at her. His gaze lingered on her longer than she would have liked. "Huh? Wuts that?" A little furry head poked out from her chest, its whiskers tickled his toes as it sniffed.

 **Chomp.**

"Ah! DAMN IT! GET IT OFF!" Lifting his one foot, Yue wailed it around with Momo hanging from his big toe. His men each took a step back, not sure what to make of the situation. Eventually Yue lost his balance, falling on his rear end by Fuu's legs.

' _This is my chance! Thank you Momo-san!'_ Attempting to scramble her way up, Fuu was met with a pain she never experience before. She let out a blood curdling scream that even she didn't believe she could have made. Once again pinned to the ground she slowly looked to her left shoulder were she was met with a blade. Her dusty pink kimono slowly painted red.

"Nice try." One of Yue's men sneered down at her, holding his katana firm he leaned into it a bit more until the earth beneath its tip wouldn't give more room. Yue was finally rid of Momo, and the pesky critter seemed to just disappear. He was obviously less than happy.

"I was plannin' on makin' this quick for ya but now I think I want ta enjoy myself a bit." Standing back up the four men looked at eachother, all thinking the same thing.

She would have felt a cold chill if it wasn't for her adrenaline rushing and the pain shouting from her shoulder. The man above seemed to twist the blade slightly, making her scream out in pain once again.

"It's really too bad, you're not half bad looking either."

"Yea but who would want her now? You went and fucked up her shoulder, she's covered blood."

"So? It's not her shoulder that we need- right?"

 _'Damn it...everything is getting woozy...'_ Looking at the four men she knew she was done. There was nothing else she could possibly do. Her premonition was right. The night would end with her blood spilled on the streets. _'Red...there's red everywhere...'_ Looking once again at her shoulder, the crimson colour was soaking into her kimono, turning into different shades between red and pink. Looking back to the men her eye caught Red again. At a concession, she could see a speck of red. She tried to sit up a bit more to get a better view but the katana pinning her to the ground made it impossible.

Red.

When was the last time she saw red? Really and truly saw red, the only true red in her mind. The kind of red that yelled at her, insulted her and made her angry to no end. But yet the same red would always come to her rescue, to end whoever stood in the way, to cut down whoever made her cry.

* * *

 _Their footsteps crunched on the country road. Surrounded by fields of yellow flowers, the kind of flowers that she both gained happiness and melancholy from. She looked at the backs of the two men who she had travelled with for the last 8 months. Their backs seemed to be straighter, their heads held higher than what they were when the first started the journey. Even despite their wounds and sore bodies, they continued on. Not one word spoken. Maybe because they all knew this would be the last time they walked like this. Although the two men would never admit it, Fuu was certain they too were enjoying this last venture. They were taking it all in, soaking in the details to keep in their memories forever._

 _Although in the sea of yellow in which they walked, she saw only two colours. Blue and red._

 _Blue was always quiet, well reserved- at least around her. Blue was careful and caring. Reliable, classic. Blue would always be there just like in the sky. The cool and calm demeanor blue carried was nothing less than respectable._

 _Then there it was. Red._

 _Red always jumped out at her. Making her heart race with excitement. It was because red was so unpredictable, and it was loud. Actually loud was an understatement. Red had a way of bringing in attention even without saying anything, being around you made your eyes go to him. Whether it was positive or negative attention, it was always directed at red. Oddly enough red was always the colour that would follow wherever he would go. Whether it was a pointless fight or to protect her, red would splatter everywhere. It was the colour he was born into, it was the colour he created whenever he went._

 _And yet here they were. As opposite as could be. Blue and Red. Side by side. And somehow the two colours seemed to fit together better than any other combination._

 _Then when the yellow fields finally disappeared and they were met with a fork in the road, she couldn't help but smile bright- just like the pink she wore_ _._

* * *

In some ways, red is ends people, and sometimes red is the start of something new- like the dawn.

"100 DUMPLINGS!"

Each raising an eyebrow at her the four men were equally confused as they were curious.

"100 DUMPLINGS! YOU HEARD ME, I KNOW YOU DID! NOW COME HELP!"

Red.

Red was her only chance.


	3. Chapter 2 Red like the threads of Fate

**Chapter 2 - Red like the threads of Fate**

Long boney fingers laced between one another while resting on unruly locks- elbows in the air. Metal on the bottom of his getas clanked on every stone he stepped on. Sometimes he would look down and kick a rock over and over again, until it rolled out of reach. But for now, the sky had his attention. Rolling and flicking the toothpick in between his lips he thought of what to do next. All he had done the last 2, almost 3 years was walk. He went where ever the hell he felt like, following the roads or making his own path- he just walked. He would stop every now and then to earn some coin, or in some cases to claim it from whoever decided to cross him. Although it wasn't easy, his forgiveness had a price. Sometimes it was money, other times food and the best of times it was a girl with big hooters.

 _'Hooters huh...'_

Clicking his tongue he tried to think of the last time he actually had a girl with a proper set of tits. Scratching his head he let one arm fall to his side, as he searched his recent memory. He tried to pick up some girls at some underground gambling ring in some "wannabe" city near Edo, but he had drank a bottle or two more of sake that he had meant to. Which left him passed out drunk in the gutters. Stopping in his tracks he froze solid. It had been close to 10 months now since he had actually gotten laid. Like the life had been sucked out of him he slumped his shoulders. No wonder he had been so wound up these last few months. Even he had to admit that he was getting pissed off easier than he used to. He really should have stopped at a brothel when he was in Azuchi the other day.

"Damn it!" Frustrated, Mugen swung his leg back as far as he could- bringing it forward again to kick a small rock in front him. Of course without restraint, the rock flew far out of view.

 _"Don't you think you tossed it a bit too far?"_

 _"The man doesn't know the meaning of restraint."_

 _"Kiss my ass."_

 _"I mean, it's taking forever to come down!"_

Spitting out the tooth pick from between his lips he continued on down the road. Why now of all times would he remember that? It was almost 3 years since he last saw them, un-admittedly it was only 1 year since he last thought of them. Not that he ever spent his time brooding about it but every time he heard of some quiet, tight ass samurai he was prepared to finish the fight that neither of them could. Or whenever he saw some kid throwing a tantrum he couldn't help but scoff at the dumb broad that made his life a living hell for almost an entire year. And what did he get out of it? Fuck all. Zero. Zilch. He didn't even get his dumplings or so much of a thank you the entire time. He even lost his sword because of it- well, not so much as lost as it broke into pieces when he and fish face were going to settle the score once and for all. Although it was barely two days after they parted that he found himself a new blade to wield.

* * *

 _Barely entering the main street of the unknown city Mugen eyed everyone around him. Like he was going against the current of the crowd everyone avoided him like he was some kind of disease. His red haori, tanned skin and wild hair always made him stand out from everyone but more specifically everyone seemed to be paying attention to his tattoos. The two small circles around each wrist and the thick bands around his ankles told everyone a piece of his past. Even if they didn't know what he did, they knew he had done something and that was all they needed to justify their fear of him._

 _'Whatever, to hell with all them.' Propping his hands behind his head like he awalys did he made his way down the busy street looking for something to do. This was the first time in a long time he could do whatever the hell he wanted to. No one screaming at him to stop or to not forget some bullshit promise he supposedly made. No more nagging about spending money on sake or women. Although lodging would be more difficult, some how that flat chested brat talked her way into free rooms. It as probably because he and fish face would hide around the corner while she fluttered those eyelashes._

 _Looking over his shoulder, he stared at the hips and ass of some random girl walking in the opposite direction. 'Now that's a woman!' If only Fuu looked like that he could have enjoyed the journey a hell of a lot more. A woman's curves made life a lot better, especially when those curves were under him. Mugen's thoughts were interrupted when someone bumped into him, or he bumped into the other person- either way, he was instantly pissed._

 _"Hey what the hell do you think you're doing?! Watch where you're going!" It was some young punk and his posse of wannabe tough guys. They circled around him like they thought they could scare him or something._

 _Clenching his jaw, Mugen glared down at the 'sonuva bitch' who interrupted his day dream of a voluptuous woman. He eyed the punk who was a few inches shorter than him, and his eyes caught something interesting strapped to his hip. It appeared to be a custom made sword. The handle was that of a bugu jitte jutte, it was wrapped with a red braided material and at the end hung a long red braid that knotted into a fluffy tassel. However it seemed to fit in an ordinary black lacquered sheath. Rubbing his chin he grinned. The young man in front of him seemed to finally notice the blue tattoos around Mugen's wrists._

 _"Listen here. I'll forgive you for today, but I don't want to see your face ever a-"_

 _"Oh? Is that so eh?" Cocky grin still on his face Mugen leaned down, Shadowing over the nervous youth. "Are you sure ya don't want to settle this like men?" He couldn't help but snicker under his breath. It was clear that the swords they carried were only for looks, they probably never even been in a fist fight before._

 _"D-Don't think you can scare us just because you have those tattoos. You're nothing more than a common criminal!"_

 _Raising an eyebrow, Mugen stood straight again. Completely undaunted by what was being said to him he tuned him out-sticking a finger in his ear he scratched a itch._

 _"-I mean you don't even have a sword!"_

 _"Oh?" Finger still in his ear, Mugen nonchalantly brought a foot up and cracked it into the punk's nose. Blood spewed from his nostrils as he tumbled backwards. "An' who the hell says I need a sword to fight?"_

 _The members of his "posse" instantly ran off, leaving their friend without a second thought. Bending his knees Mugen drapped his long arms down and looked at the pathetic youth._

 _"But now that you mention it..."_

* * *

The black sheath pressed against Mugen's back, not that it bothered him. He had never seen a blade like it and it served its purpose well. Finally coming to a split in the road he looked at the sign. Although he still had difficulties reading he was able to make it out.

"Osaka...Kobe..." It was more of a grunt than words. He was tired, bored, and all he wanted to do was get laid and get drunk. Left for Osaka or right for Kobe. "Ta hell with it..." Veering right he started making his way for Kobe. He hadn't been there yet- maybe it would be worth his while.

"Haha oh man! I'm telling your wife what you did last night!"

"The hell you will! The sow won't let me hear the end of it if you did."

Two men on a small wagon were merging on the main road from the direction of Osaka. Mugen tried not to pay any attention to what they were saying but the loud mouths wouldn't shut up.

"But man...I gotta say, the sake was the best I've ever had."

"Forget the sake, how about those prostitutes eh?"

"Oh man were they something else!"

Once again frozen on the spot, Mugen had heard all he needed to. Turning on his heel, he changed direction. Elbows in the air once again he passed the small wagon pulled by a single mule. 'Osaka it is.'

Standing in the middle of the busy heat, Mugen felt like the sun was melting his skin. Sweat dropped down from his brows as he looked at the face of strangers passing by. Unlike in Azuchi, the people of Osaka could care less what he looked like. No one seemed to avoid him or to give a damn about him in anyway. Which was better for him, get in, and get out- that was his plan. First things first was to scout out and find the brothels, which didn't take long. There were always people standing at the street corners, talking about how their brothel had the best girls and the best prices. As long as they had a decent face and nice hooters he was happy. But there was a problem, he still didn't have any money- which he direly needed to change.

"Oi! Where the hell does a guy go to make sum' money around here?" Mugen towered over an elderly man that was sitting at an information stand. The old man looked up, unnerved by Mugen and his scowl. Mugen was starting to become impatient with the day already, despite not doing anything other than walking. The amount of people on the streets and the scortching sun was making him irritable.

"Hmm.." The man's gaze seemed to look at Mugen's scar over his right eyebrow and then to his wrist tattoos. Bringing up his index finger he curled it- indicating he wanted Mugen to come closer.

"Eh?" Balled fists went into his pockets as Mugen sharply bent over so he was face to face with old man.

"If you're looking for money...go to this place. No questions asked." The man spoke in a soft whisper, handing Mugen a small folded piece of paper. "Tell them Joho O toko sent you."

"Joho sent you?" Looking down at the piece of paper, the man behind the counter looked at it, and then looked back to Mugen. The man was nothing stand out, he looked like your average 45 year old guy that ran a run of the mill shop.

At first Mugen had to do a double take when he got there, but the piece of paper said this was the place. He felt like a bull in a china shop- because that was pretty much what it was. The store was filled with many different vases and bowls. Ranging in size, colours and price. It seemed all too damn normal- he was expecting something much different. Tapping his geta on the floor Mugen was growing restless, he just wanted some damn money so he could have himself a good time tonight.

"Listen man, you lookin' for someone or not?"

Looking around the shop, the man made sure no one else was around before leading Mugen to the hidden back room. It was empty. Before Mugen could make any comments the man raised a carpet, revealing a hatch-a hidden room underneath. Following the man again Mugen understood why it was a "no questions asked" kind of job.

The room was dark with only a few lanterns hanging on some old rusty hooks. And 2 long tables standing at waist height with 5 men at each side of both tables. Each man looked as shady as the next, or atleast their eyes did. They were all wearing different coloured bandanas around their hair and their noses-so all that you could see was their peepers. It made sense why Mugen was told to come here- their eyes were just like his. The room was filled with large decorative vases, but it was clear the vases weren't just for looks. Both tables and some vases were filled with round green plants that looked like they were topped with little green crowns. Other vases were filled with what they were extracting- opium.

"We only have 3 rules, no names, no trying the product, and no ratting. If you try anything, or if the police show up- we will find you and we will end you."

"Yea yea...whatever you say.. So, what the hell do you need me to do?"

Mugen was given a bandana to cover up his hair and nose with. He then joined them at the tables, opening the buds and extracting the substance from within. The emptied buds were then discarded into vases on one side of the room, and the fillings were then scooped into other vases as well. He wasn't sure how long he was down there for, with no daylight or view of the outside it all blurred together. Once every vase was filled each man was forced to wash their hands in mint leaf water- to cover up the sweet scent left by the opium buds. Then slowly one by one were let out of the secret room, some leaving out the front and others out the back to make it seem inconspicuous. Being the last one left he was asked to help carry up the vases to the wagons. So that was exactly what he did. He carried vase after vase up to some small covered wagon where some guy with the uglies mug he's ever seen was waiting. One wagon got the vases full of empty buds, and another got the vases with the goods. Finally, Mugen was tossed a pack full of money. To be honest, he was impressed by the amount he was given for just a few hours of work, some of it was obviously hush money. But hey, he didn't care- money was money.

Even though he had worked most of the day away the sun was still as hot as it was before. The number of people buzzing around the streets didn't dwindle away either. Tucking his hands and his earnings safely away in his pocket his stomach yelled at him to find something to eat. He started on his way, walking with his legs spread further than he should have. His knees seemed to go up higher and further, keeping people from walking near him. Not that he cared, he was looking at signs, looking for a suitable place to eat. His mind was set on an agenda, food, booze, women, sleep. He was sure to enjoy himself once night came.

"Hm?"

For some reason, through the large crowd he spotted the colour yellow. It was some chick with wearing a yellow obi. _'Eh...she's not half bad...'_ She was only in his line of vision for a few seconds before she disappeared into the crowd, going in the opposite direction as him. He thought maybe he would follow her, and see if she wanted to have some fun down some alley but hell, he was hungry. Finding a small teahouse Mugen plopped himself down at the table closest to the door. Part of him was hoping for a young busty waitress but instead it was an old woman with a hunched back.

"2 orders of shrimp tempura. 3 orders of dumplings, and some sake." He spat out his order before the woman even had time to greet him. He placed his sword on the seat next to him and glared up at the elderly woman. She didn't bother saying anything, she just went to the back and gave her husband the order. It didn't take long before 5 plates and a small bottle of sake were placed infront of him. Not bothering to taste or savour the much needed meal, Mugen displayed his lack of restraint and manners. Crumbs fell over his chin and onto his lap. A few patrons looked back at him as he smacked his food around in his mouth- a few chewed pieces slipping back out and onto the plate. And just as fast as the food arrived it was gone.

"Can I get you anything else?"

Looking up from the last drops of sake in his cup Mugen still had crumbs stuck to his chin.

"Got a busty waitress in the back?"

The old woman's face grew red and she huffed out, slamming a piece of paper on the table. It was the bill. Mugen had planned on staying for some more sake but there were plenty of other places he could go to.

"Whatever, here you go.." Clicking his tongue, he tossed some coins on the table. Mugen then picked up his sword and left. The sun was finally started to go down, but he he would still have to wait for night time before he would go to a brothel.

Knocking another sake bottle back it fell over on its side at the counter. He managed to find a small concession stand a few blocks away from the teahouse he ate at. The man running it had some damn funny stories to tell. And he didn't seem to mind Mugen's rough behaviour.

"-And so where did you say you were from?" Grabbing the empty sake bottles, he grabbed a fresh one out of the warm bucket.

"I didn't." Accepting another sake bottle Mugen put his lips to it, taking in another large gulp.

"Ahh..so you're a traveller. What brings you to Osaka then? It isn't exactly the most peaceful place right now..."

"I heard Osaka had good sake and women. So here I am." Wiping his mouth with his arm Mugen wobbled in his seat. "Besides...no where in Japan is peaceful right now so who cares."

"Ha, I guess you're right but just between you and me, it seems the yakuza group here has been growing. Rumors of opium and other things are being spread." The man shook his head at the thought.

 _'Heh...well you're not wrong old man. Where the hell do you think I got my money from? I ain't exactly the honest days work type.'_ Mugen smacked his lips and tongue around. The sake was definitely starting to take hold of him. His tongue had the "itchy" feeling he usually got when he was a few drinks away from being drunk. "Who the hell cares anyway? If its not one thing then its another. Just be happy you ain't dead."

The notion seemed to bother the man a bit. But his attention was else where. Looking at the man his eyes seemed to go right to left, following whoever was making all that noise. Their clip clopping shoes were ruining Mugen's buzz. Once again bringing the sake bottle to his mouth he chugged the rest of it- slamming the bottle on the counter but not hard enough to break it.

"Ah-ha Got her!"

"Let me go! Damn it! I said, LET. ME. GO!"

Nervously the concession stand man took the empty sake bottle, trying to advert his eyes from the commotion that was happening just down the street. Though Mugen could care less, the sun had finally gone down and that meant it was time to get laid.

"Oi, one more bottle before I go!"

The man tensed up when the young woman getting attacked let out a blood curdling scream. His face showed remorse and regret. "I hate what this city has become..." He placed the last and final sake bottle on the counter. "Yakuza at every corner, no one is safe anymore. That poor girl got caught up in something horrible..."

"Well, that's life for ya. You're either strong or you ain't. In life you either send yourself to hell or someone else does it for you." Mugen wasn't exactly a fan of women getting attacked but the world wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. It's not like he never did horrible things to a woman before- but he wasn't like that anymore. Bringing the warm bottle to his mouth Mugen's breath caressed the opening.

"100 DUMPLINGS!"

Eyes narrowing he knitted his brows. It was like his heart skipped a beat...no, it wasn't that. The world around him became static- all he could hear was his breathing, and his heart beat beating in his ear like a drum. Did he hear correct or had the sake hit him harder than he realized? He has had quite a few bottles to himself- he lost count to be honest. _'What the hell was that?...'_ He very well knew what the hell it was. It was the same voice that kept him up at night, the one that gave him one hell of a headache. When was the last time he heard that voice? Not just in his head, but actually heard it being spoken at him.

* * *

 _"Um, listen... There's something that I haven't told you."_

 _The two men turned to their young female companion. She seemed nervous- probably because this was it. Their journey had come to an end as they fulfilled their promise to her. They delivered her to the Sunflower Samurai, and now there was nothing else left for them. The road they stood infront of split into three, each one would surely take a different path._

 _"Huh?" Mugen wasn't ready for whatever heart felt speech the girl at prepared for them. He didn't want her crying and begging for them to stay with her. After all, the damn girl was constantly getting kidnapped._

 _"As in?" Jin stood as stoic as ever, not bothering to fix his glasses despite them falling lower on his nose than usual._

 _"Way back when we started this trip, we made a bet, remember? The thing is... It actually came up heads." She looked down and twiddled her thumbs together. Trying to hide her smirk from her two exbodyguards._

 _"-Say what?!"_

 _"-You didn't...!"_

 _"That's all." Walking past the two men, Fuu chose to follow the road that continued straight. Not taking a turn, and not veering anywhere else other than forward. Because why would she do otherwise? All she had now was the future, and the two men behind her- they were her past._

 _"She has us completely fooled." Jin snickered under his breath as he watched the young companion walk away from him. He didn't feel the sadness he almost expected himself too. Because after all he had become use to her company, her behaviour, and her tender care. She was like the family that the world never granted him._

 _"What did we even come on this trip for?" Just like Jin, Mugen couldn't help but smile. He was surprised through and through. 'The girly managed to keep it together at the end after all..' So he watched for a bit, her hands held behind her back, and her messy bun bouncing with each step._

 _"Well, bye! I hope we meet again!"_

* * *

And she was gone, never looking back. She didn't even bother saying thank you, or that her sorry ass was going to miss him or Jin. The damn girl dragged them all over Japan and he got nothing in return. Not even his dumplings. Honestly he expected her to cry or some dumb shit like that. But it was probably for the best she didn't- she would have just hurt herself more. But yet she left with just a simple "I hope we meet again.".

It had been almost 3 years since then. Unwanted by him, he did have dreams- or nightmares he called them. Where she would be there, nagging him about every little thing. But he never day dreamed, he never heard her voice so clear since that day they went separate paths. And so he waited, the sake radiating heat to his lips...he waited, just like he had done since that fateful day.

"100 DUMPLINGS! YOU HEARD ME, I KNOW YOU DID! NOW COME HELP!"

Fate. It was something Fuu believed in but it seemed the universe never bestowed it upon her. Or at least she never thought to much of it when the time came. Was there such a thing as a doomed fate? Was there even a good side to it? Perhaps it was all by chance, or was it you made your own path in life? When was the last time she ever considered fate an option for the things that happened around her. She was once told a story, about fate. An explanation to why those around you either disappear or reappear no matter what. Within the endlessly complex thing that was the human body there was the heart. The heart had the power to keep a person going, through networks of blood flowing rivers that connected the entire body. Even everything as small as the pinky was directly connected to the heart. But, as it was explained to her, it was the heart and the pink that actually reached out beyond just their physical forms.

An invisible red thread stretched from the heart, out the pinky and into the world and ties itself to the thread of others. But there are only 2 ends to each string, despite the connections it makes. Two people are connected in this way, and are tied together forever. No matter the circumstances, or the time that has them separated, they are destined to meet. And when they do meet they are both profoundly and forever affected by it. Even if you may not realize it, nothing happens by accident, it's the red string of Fate.

For him, the whole damn world seemed to slow down as he turned from his seat. A girl in a yellow obi pinned down by 4 dirty perverts. Setting his last bottle of sake on the counter, he didn't bother drinking a single drop of it. All he could see was yellow, and then red. Her fighting grunts and pained shrieks echoed in his head. Mugen didn't even hear the man at the concession stand yell at him as he grabbed his sword and left his seat without paying his hefty bill. Each step he took felt like an eternity. His eyes focused on the yellow obi, the legs and mouth of the girl were still flailing-like she could some how get herself out of this. She was pinned down by a katana piercing through her shoulder, and some bastard kept twisting it.

"Come on 'en, take 'er down the alley. Let's see if she will still 'av some fight in 'er when we're done."

Her heart sank, she couldn't reach the tanto in her sleeve, not with her one shoulder and arm immobilized. One of the men shuffled their feet to the bottom hem of her kimono, slowly lifting it up higher on her leg. Now they were talking about dragging her away, she winced when the katana in her shoulder started to move. Clenching her eyes shut she awaited for it to be removed and for her body to start dragging into the dark and shady alley- where no one would see them. But the pain in her shoulder didn't come- the katana didn't move. Like rain falling on her face, something spattered, it was warm. She opened her eyes and there it was.

Red.

A blade was pierced through the abdomen of the man pinning her down. Red spewed out like a gaizer- the blade only glistening more with the red liquid dripping down its slick form. No one made a sound except for the man gurgling on his own blood, trying to breath. But to no prevail, blood ran out of his mouth and down his chin, once again painting Fuu with more of the fated colour. A tanned hand, with long fingers placed itself on the shoulder of the dying man, the blade pulled out of his body and then was tossed to the side. By how loud of a sound the body made, Fuu assumed he was dead before he hit the ground.

"You wanna say that again?"

Was he talking to her, or Yue and his guys? Either way she didn't know how to respond, because there he was. Like the threads of Fate had them knotted together, she was lead to him. She could have turned down any other street but yet she came down this one, she was tackled and thrown down here. Why not 3 streets down, why not yesterday or tomorrow? Fate seemed to be having its way with her.

"What the fuck do you think yer doin'!?"

"-The fuck you think I'm doing?" Raising an eyebrow, Mugen didn't bother swinging his sword to clean it of the blood. Instead he brought it up as it collided with an oncoming blade. Soon the area echoed in an orchestra of steel on steel. Despite the fuzzy feeling from the sake, he was still able to participate- although he knew his strikes and movements were sluggish. He watched the two men sweat as they tried to cut him down. What was he born yesterday? Did they really think he would fall for the basic two on one battle? He was toying with them, or rather he was buying time. He looked at the guy with the ugly mug as he stood next to Fuu's bleeding body. He had seen him before- but where?

She tried to watch what was exactly happening but she could only raise her neck so much. And there was no way that her arms would be long enough to grab the hilt or handle of the katana to remove it. She wasn't sure if she had it in her to pull it out by the blade, her shoulder hurt enough, and she couldn't imagine willingly slicing her hands open. Yue stood on her right side, watching the fight. He was completely taken off guard and was paying no attention to her. Some how bringing her left hand into her right sleeve she pulled out her tanto, unsheathing it. Swallowing her nerves, she thrust it as hard as she could with one hand into the outer thigh of Yue.

"AH YA DUMB BITCH!" His foot instantly connected with her face before pulling out the pink tanto. "That's it, yer done!"

Hearing the ugly sonuvabitch yell and call Fuu a bitch, Mugen looked to see the pink tanto get pulled out of his leg. The momentary distraction resulted in a deep slice on his side. 'Ah fuck it!' He had enough of playing around. With a spinning kick, Mugen kept his blade out, gutting one man where he stood and his foot cracking the jaw of the other.

"That's my bitch, dumbass!" Using his blade like a spear, Mugen rocketed it at Yue- getting him in the chest.

Stumbling backwards, Yue dropped Fuu's tanto before he tripped over his feet onto the hard ground. Looking up Yue was met with the eyes of the devil himself. Deprived of remorse and dark as the night sky, the eyes bore into him. It would be the last thing he ever saw before everything turned black.

Pulling his sword out of Yue's chest, Mugen wiped the blood off on the dead mans shoulder until it shined once again. He then sheathed it over his shoulder. The teachings of his youth never let him forget- check the pockets. Jin never let him before, because it was disrespectful to the dead. _'Yea well, not like they need it...'_ He pulled out some koban from a pocket inside of Yue's haori and quickly stuffed it into his own pocket. Heavy, laboured breathing reminded him of why he was there in the first place. Quickly turning around he finally looked to her. Taking it all in he was a mix of emotions. He never thought he would see her again, correction; he didn't want to see her again. But yet there she was, laying in front of him. Never in a million years did he ever think that if he saw her it would be like this. Katana still pinning her to the ground, her face a bloody mess, and her kimono hiked up past her knees. It looked like the bastard broke her nose so he couldn't get a proper look at her face. Brows knit together he listened to how hard it was for her breath. 'Ya..her nose is definitely broken.' Her big eyes didn't seem so innocent anymore, not when they were caked in blood and with bruising skin circling them. Her eyelashes still fluttered, she was fading in and out of consciousness. His stomach knotted, he felt sick- he would blame the sake, but that wasn't it.

"You sure got yourself into a mess this time didn't ya girly..."

 _'Mugen...'_ Reaching towards him, her vision was speckled with black but before it consumed her- a warmth spread around her shaking hand. Somehow letting her know the darkness around her wouldn't last forever, because the red thread of Fate was there.


	4. Chapter 3 - Liberated Flames

**So this chapter is the longest one yet, and honestly it drags on for a bit but there were some things that needed to be explained and built up. It also may seem there's a lot of intense things happening considering the story has just started but I have a plan and it involves all of this needing to happen. There's a lot of back and forth between scenes and times (much like the first episode of Samurai Champloo). And there's a lot of talking, but hey, hopefully after this Chapter I can get started on some of the fun stuff. This chapter is just over 10,000 words, for the future I plan on having all of my chapters around the same word count.  
** **I have this story rated M for a reason, not just the language and violence but there are certain things that will happen that some people might not be comfortable with.**

 **I do not own Samurai Champloo or the characters. Nor do I want to take credit for them.**

 **Story Review- therp :**

 **Thank you for your review. It's my very first one ever! I try to make any action easy to follow, even if I would like to do more complex combinations I keep in mind that not everyone's imagination works the same. So simple and to the point it is! Although I may get to the point where I can describe more thoroughly and then I'll be able to expand and prolong some scenes. I originally planned to post a chapter every 2 days or so since my husband is gone to school for 2 months, I have a bunch of free time in the evenings once my kids are in bed. But I've been completely over taken by Haikyu! (Omg..I just can't even begin to put my fandom into words about it. I am just in love with Tanaka, he is so funny).**

 **Chapter 3 - Red like the burning Fire**

* * *

Everything was quiet around her. She was neither cold nor warm, happy nor sad. She sat up in a vast world that was nothing but blank white space. Here, there was no up or down, north, south, east or west. It was all the same. There seemed to be no source of the light, nor did it ever seem to end. Hesitantly she took a step, then another, and another. Hoping that maybe in the infinite stillness there was something else. She felt like she floated as she walked, slowly picking up her pace she could no longer feel her own body. Was she even breathing? What was she even looking for, should she even bother? Stopping to cover her face, she sobbed in complete silence. Until a slight tug on her pinky took her out of her self pity. A red thread, tied in a perfect bow wrapped itself around her smallest digit, and it stretched out far beyond her line of vision. In the empty white she was trapped in, she made the choice to follow the thin line of red. Feeling like she was running in place she moved as fast as she could, trying to reach the end of the line. With a blink of an eye she was face to face with a large field of sunflowers. They stood taller than her, like they were some how watching her. Their bright yellow petals and dark center stared at her. Looking to her left hand, the red thread attached to her pinky still pulled taut, straight into the field of flowers. But somehow, she couldn't bring herself to follow the thread any longer- not in there.

Eyes fluttered open to outstretched shadows dancing along the ceiling and walls around her. Her head and shoulder ached with a pain that she wasn't familiar with. The room was unknown to her, but it also felt like she'd been there before. Maybe because it was plain, almost bare with nothing in it- just like the many sheds, shacks and rooms she stayed in when she was looking for her father. The ceiling seemed to be wrecked in a few places and was severely sagging, letting in the light of the setting (or rising) sun. She had no idea what time of day it was, or even the day itself. She could barely remember what happened- she remembered everything at the Inn and then being pursued by Yue. How long was she out for? How did she get here? Although, she had a pretty good suspicion on who brought her here but she was alone. To her left was her small bag that she packed in a scramble. She reached for it and instantly regretted her choice when the pain radiated from her shoulder. Wincing, she didn't give up on the bag and managed to bring it to herself. Slowly sitting up she opened it.

"Ah..Momo-san, there you are..." Her voice was quiet, but she was relieved to see her small furry companion was still with her. The squirrel "booped" it's nose to her index finger, small whiskers tickled her skin. Going through her bag she found her small mirror. Maybe it would have been better if she didn't look at herself.

She almost didn't recognize the person she saw looking back at her. Tucking her long hair behind her ears she studied herself. From her nose all the way under to the outer corners of her eyes were blotched in purple and yellow bruising. The bridge of her nose however was bandaged, she didn't want to see the damage what was done underneath. Her concern instantly went to how it would heal, if she would have a crooked and bumpy nose afterwards. Feeling the bandaging gently with her fingers she felt like there was a clamp, or a mold over her nose and under the medical material. Following the lines of her face she could feel the swelling of her cheeks, and her top lip. Near the center of the said lip, there was a split- it would definitely scar. Other than that her face seemed normal. Looking down at herself, she had fresh bandaging over her shoulder, upper arm and around her chest. Her face flushed red like a tomato. _'What all did he see?!... No relax Fuu, obviously someone else did this. There's no way Mugen would...wait, no. Where's my kimono?!'_ She hugged herself when it finally hit her that she wasn't wearing any of the layers of her kimono. On her was a thin, tattered cloth that barely seemed to cover her body. Which meant, other than the bandaging and the cloth- she was wearing nothing else.

"T-that dirty pervert!"

Inspecting the room more she saw her kimono and the white underlayer hanging up in a corner. She didn't want to stay like this longer than she had too. Wrapping the cloth around herself she attempted to stand up to collect her clothing. As soon as she tried to straighten out her knees to stand, the room felt like it was spinning in all directions. Instantly she fell forwards onto the floor. She tried to catch herself but collapsed when her weight hit her left arm.

"What the hell are you trying to do?" Standing in the doorway, knuckle deep in one nostril was Mugen.

Looking up she was speechless. It was the first time she's seen him since they parted ways, other than the faded flashes of him saving her. So she couldn't help but stare. Maybe it was because she was on the ground but it almost looked like he grew a few inches taller. His skin still kissed by the sun, and he was a few weeks late on shaving like always. Not that he had much for facial hair other than a few wiry hairs here and there. From his ears the orbed jade earrings still dangled. He wore the same garb as before, but maybe his shirt was slightly different? She couldn't quite place it but over all, apart from a few new scars on his face and arms, he seemed exactly the same.

"Hey..." Like he teleported, Mugen was suddenly crouching in front of her, almost face to face. "Didn't your mom tell you its rude to stare?" Finally pulling his finger from his nostril he wiped it on her forehead.

"EW MUGEN!" Trying to scramble away she wiped her forehead but was met with the same dizzy spell that she had when she tried to stand.

Without even offering to help her, Mugen just watched as Fuu placed one hand to her forehead, trying to steady everything. She looked to pale compared to when he saw her last. Probably because she isn't out day after day travelling anymore. She settled down, and from the amount of money she had on her, she obviously had a job- a damn good one at that. And the amount of blood she lost wasn't helping her complection either.

"So tell me girly, what the hell did you do to piss off the yakuza?"

"Huh...? Yakuza?" Looking at the bare floor boards she chortled at the thought, because it made sense. It was more than just some rinky-dink opium operation, which is why Yue tried to get rid of her. Collecting her thoughts and steadying herself she turned to face him again. "I had no idea they were the yakuza to be honest. I accidentally... wait. Why should I tell you anyway?"

"Ahh?" Running his hands through his hair he scratched at an itch before plopping himself backwards onto his rear. "Whatever don't tell me." Legs spread eagle he watched her. Her face changed expressions about every 10 seconds, confused, frustrated, dizzy- the girl was at a loss on what to do.

"So...Mugen, did you do this?" She indicated she was talking about all the bandaging.

"Why should I tell you?"

He was always fast at back and forths. He struck a nerve in her, and did it ever show on her face. It was a mere reflection of the 15 year old girl that he saved countless times in the past. But this time, she didn't yell or chew him out. She puffed out her cheeks and slowly let all the air out before her face relaxed.

"Fine! I'll tell you..." Tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear she thought of how much to tell him, should she explain it all or keep it short and sweet?

"10 words or less." He knew the look on her face, she was getting ready to tell one hell of a story and he didn't have the patience for it. The girl didn't have many talents, or any skills but there were two things she sure as hell could do- eat, and talk.

"My boss was part of an opium operation and I accidentally...caught him and destroyed some of it..." It was more than 10 words but she said what she needed.

"What, how the hell do you accidentally do that?!" He was flabbergasted. He assumed that she turned one of them down when they tried to cope a feel or something. But she somehow got involved in the opium operation. _'Is this girl stupid or what? How does she get involved in this kind of stuff?'_

"Wha- it's not like I meant to do it! I accidentally bumped into him and broke two of these vases full of it!"

 _'Vases? Did she say vases?'_

"Did all this go down the same day that they attacked you?" Crossing his legs he leaned in more. This is how she knew he was serious, he stared at her with such intensity and it was a bit nerve wracking. She slowly nodded her head. He thought back on the day that he helped extract and load it up- it was probably the same damn vases he helped fill.

"Yue came for me with three other men... I ran as fast and as far as I could but...well.." Looking down at her shoulder she swallowed a lump in her throat. She honestly thought she was going to die, and a part of her thought that Mugen being there was all in her head- that she was going crazy in her last moments. It was all still a little fuzzy to her. "Thank you, Mugen...for saving me..again." The room grew eerily quiet. Fuu expected him to smirk at her or to say something stupid like he always does but instead he was just sitting there. His eyes were closed and his brows furrowed.

"You said he had three men?...So that means that there were four?"

"Uhh..yes, four men."

"Not three?"

"Not three. Four. " This time she held up 4 fingers with a look of complete certainty.

He looked at her fingers, placing each one with his method of killing. _'1. The bastard that had her pinned 2. Pretty sure I gutted one 3. That ugly motherfucker that I harpooned'_ For the life of him he couldn't remember there being a fourth guy. Maybe she was wrong, she got knocked out pretty hard so her memory was pretty fuzzy. But man...did she ever look like a pile of shit. A chick shouldn't look like that- their skin was supposed to be smooth and flawless, not beaten and bruised.

"Didn't you just tell me it was rude to stare?" Holding the cloth up close to her chest she was trying to act coy. The material moved up enough it showed most of her shins.

"Don't flatter yourself girly. Your face lookes like a bamboons ass."

She couldn't even disagree with him. She did look horrible, but without his care she would have been worse off. Heck, without him she would have been raped and then killed- they probably would have left her body in the streets for everyone to see. But, that didn't happen and her wounds would heal with time."Yea well...just wait until the bruising goes away. Then you'll see what a hotty I've become!"

"Pew." He mimicked the sound he made whenever he spat on the ground. "The day I find you attractive is the day hell freezes over. Now hurry the hell up and get some rest so I can get back to my own damn life." He left it at that, leaving Fuu alone once again.

"-Is the day hell freezes over." Lowering her voice she mimicked him, much to her own amusement she was pretty spot on. "Hmph...what a jerk." She could call him a jerk all she wanted and yet she knew it wasn't true. It was just who he was- his attitude, his outlook. He doesn't try to be mean or hurtful, he just says what he wants before he thinks about it. _'No..he's a jerk'_ . She spent the rest of the day laying on the hard floor, mostly looking at herself in the mirror. She really did look like a bamboons butt. Long eyelashes fluttered, she tried to fight her fatigue, she watched the door hoping for Mugen to come back...if he comes back that is.

"What a brat." Leaving the small hut that Fuu was staying in he trudged along. What was he going to do with her? She wasn't his responsibility and yet here he was checking in on her, again. She had been sleeping like a rock for the last 3 days, he wasn't sure if she would ever wake up- not after a beating like that. Now if it was him, he would have kept on going until all the son of a bitches dropped to the ground. But Fuu wasn't like him, she was delicate, like a paper doll she could easily be torn and broken. The fact that he took initiative to bring her out here was surprising enough.

* * *

 _Gripping the katana in one hand Mugen pulled the blade out of Fuu's shoulder. It was a good thing she was unconscious because he knew from experience that it hurt just as much coming out as it did going in. Tossing it to the side, the blade clanged against stones on the street. Onlookers finally showed their faces now that the Yakuza members seemed to have been reprimanded. 'What a bunch of cowards...' Though they still seemed scared through and through- perhaps they thought he was one of them. Or they were scared for the poor girl that laid bleeding on the street._

 _"Hurry, you need to go, now." It was the man that ran the concession stand that Mugen was just at. Fixing Fuu's kimono hem, the man then collected the pink tanto and the small tote bag that laid near her feet that Mugen had missed._

 _"What are you doing?" Mugen accepted Fuu's stuff from him, not sure what his motive was._

 _"Someone ran to get help, and if the Yakuza's grip is as tight on this city as I fear then...they are likely on their way too." Reaching over Fuu's body the man patted Mugen on the shoulder. "You're not as bad as you think. After all, you did save this girl."_

 _"I'll tell you what ol' man...you're dumber than you look." Smirking, Mugen picked up Fuu's limp body. He couldn't remember the last time he held someone like this- maybe it was never. His right arm hooked under her knees and his other arm wrapped itself around her tiny back. It felt weird, if she weren't in such bad shape he would have tossed her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "Thanks for the sake." With his geta's hitting the ground at record speed, Mugen left the scene of the crime. He didn't bother waiting around to see if anyone else showed up at the scene like that man said._

 _But now the question was, what to do with her? Leave her at the door of some monastery like a baby? 'Nah... the broad won't be safe anywhere in Osaka... Damn it.' Why was he worrying so much about her? He didn't owe her anything, and not like she was someone special. She somehow managed to survive without him for almost 3 years, so why now of all times? Maybe he should have went to Kobe instead...But the million dollar question of the night still was, where to go now? So he kept running until the lanterns eventually died out, and the only light was that of the moon shining through tree branches. Maybe at this point they would be after him instead of her, he did kill 3 of them after all. He still didn't know what she went and did to make them so pissy either. Maybe he's just blowing it all out of proportion and nobody actually gives a damn about if she's dead or not._

 _He had been running in the woods for quite some time now and the bush only seemed be growing thicker which made it hard for Mugen to continue running. But just like it was placed there for them, there it was. An old abandoned trappers hut. The tree branches were overgrown, scratching the roof that seemed to be barely hanging on. The grass and bushes grew wild, like a natural camouflage over the wooden exterior. Getting the door open was difficult, the foundation had moved which made it almost impossible- and holding Fuu didn't make it any easier either. The inside was about what he expected it to be- damp, dirty, dusty. It didn't exactly smell like mold but some part of it was retaining moisture that left an unpleasant musk in the air. Setting Fuu down in the corner so she was "sitting" up Mugen did the bare minimum to make it suitable. He dusted old cobwebs from the fire pit and used the bottom of his geta and a stone to make a spark. Once the room was finally lit, he saw that it was emptied. Not a thing in sight other than Fuu and a closet that upon closer inspection had already been emptied except for one tattered blanket._

 _Laying her down he was nervous, he was no damn doctor. When he got a wound he would just wash it off and hope for the best. The only times he was ever properly treated was when Fuu would do it. Even now, his side was still sliced but he could wait, he was use to this. Treating her wounds wasn't the only thing he was nervous about- the damn girl filled out quite nicely since the last time he saw her. If he met her like this about 4 years ago he would be doing something completely different to her. Pulling down the kimono from her shoulders he got a better look at the wound. It was a clean opening, despite the fact some bastard was twisting the blade. The movement of her kimono caused something to fall out of her sleeve, it was her coin purse._

 _"Well holy shit." Picking up the purse, it was heavy, really heavy. Opening it, his eyes almost popped out of his head- the girl was loaded. "Now why the hell couldn't you have this much money before huh?!" He asked, almost like he was waiting for her to respond, but the laboured breathing of her unconscious body was all that came out. 'What a pain in the ass.' He knew he had to clean off her face and her shoulder, but he wasn't sure if there was a river near by or not- and even if there was, how would he get water back to her? He figured he would deal with it when the time came. So he went back out into the thick of the woods, using his nose to smell for any water. He had developed the skill to locate water from his pirating days. Water carried a scent that called him, even if those around him told him that water has no smell or taste he would disagree._

 _"Eh...what's that?" Barely walking at all he came to the end of the woods, to an area that had been cleared of all trees and bushes and there sat a large Inn. With Fuu's purse with him, he couldn't help but grin. He definitely deserved this and she owed him._

 _Slamming the purse at the counter, it startled the rough looking woman sitting behind it. "Oi...I need a room."_

 _Raising an eyebrow at Mugen, the woman leaned to her left- catching eye of the bleeding mess on his side. Without saying anything she got up from her seat and went into a room that was adjacent the counter._

 _"Hey, I was talking to you bitc-"_

 _Immediately she came out of the room with a man. He was a short and balding, with glasses that pinched his nose._

 _"I understand you're in the need of certain services?"_

 _Nodding, the man then explained in hushed whispers that for a fee Mugen could have a room in the far back, and a doctor would be called for him. Apparently they dealt with this sort of thing often, and as long as the fee was paid they didn't mind. The man was a criminal, he might not have looked it but Mugen knew. He was way too comfortable with the situation, and to have a doctor they knew would come- it was all too fishy, but hey... there were weirder things in the world to be concerned about. Being guided back to a room, Mugen waited for what felt like an hour. 'Ah shit...I forgot all about her.' How stupid of him, the doctor was for her to begin with._

 _"What do you mean you let her run off?"_

 _"I-I didn't mean to. Yue and his guys went after her."_

 _'What the fuck are they talking about?' Hiding around the corner we was on his way to get Fuu and bring her here but that old man and whoever else was there seemed to be talking about something juicy. Whoever that old man was talking to had a freakishly deep voice, it almost sounded forced._

 _"-I mean she's just one girl"_

 _"You better hope she's dead already. Its her head or yours."_

 _"I swear I already told you everything I know about Fuu-chan!"_

 _'Did they say Fuu? Ah shit...' He couldn't bring her in here, but everything had already been paid for. She had barely been in his life for 2 hours and she was already giving him a god damn head ache. He had no choice but to go back to the room and wait. It wasn't but 10 minutes after that, that the door slid open and in walked a bald man with two large bags._

 _"An' who the hell are you supposed to be?"_

 _The bald man introduced himself as doctor something. Mugen wasn't paying much attention, he was too busy looking at how much his head shined in the light of the lantern. The doctor almost immediately noticed Mugen's wound and went to go address it but Mugen stopped him._

 _"I ain't got time for games so I'm just gonna come out with it...are you yakuza?" He was blunt, there was no need to dance around the subject._

 _"Hm...no I'm not. But I suppose I can understand why you'd think that... I just merely make the house calls that no one else is willing. I don't discriminate my patients, as a doctor it is my duty to heal and save those that cannot do it themselves."_

 _"-How do I know you're telling me the truth?"_

 _"..You don't. It's your choice on whether or not your trust me. Just like you had to do by trusting them to find you a doctor." Standing with one bag in each hand the doctor walked over to the window, sliding it open and he started to climb over the frame. "Take me to where they are... you obviously didn't call a doctor for yourself."_

 _"Hah...you smart ass."_

* * *

It had already been 3 days since then. That doctor stitched up Mugen's side and even worked wonders on Fuu. He stitched up her shoulder and back, he said she was lucky. That the blade miraculously missed all bones and made for a clean entry and exit, it would take awhile to heal but she would be fine. Her nose was another story; the sick bastard used his thumbs and cracked her nose back into place, and he used some kind of clay to make mold around it. But the doc said that in about 2 weeks the bandaging could come off but she would need to be careful after that.

Mugen decided to stay at the Inn- he apparently prepaid for 5 nights. Guess it was part of the unspoken agreement between him and the Inn keeper- they didn't bother him, they didn't send any services to his room either. It was like he was a ghost that walked their halls. It wasn't a bad deal though- he got decent sleep and a hot bath when he wanted. But there was one itch that still needed to be scratched.

He was in a state of full bliss standing in front of the large shot adorned with red lanterns. Slamming one of the koban's that he stole from Yue's haori onto the counter the owners happily guided him to one of their finest rooms where they would bring out a selection of women for him. He had to surrender his weapons, as per protocol.

With sake in his hand Mugen looked at the 5 women that were brought for him to pick. He couldn't help his lascivious grin, he was already getting excited just looking at them. One thing he disliked about prostitutes was the makeup they put on them. Mugen wasn't one for romance but he sure as hell liked to play tonsil hockey- and the shit they put on their lips tasted terrible. Each woman had an alright face, nothing too stand outish but it wasn't their faces he was paying attention too. Hooters...he needed a good set of hooters in his hands and he needed them now.

He eyed the fourth woman in the line up, from what he could see under the layers of her kimono that she had a bang on body. "Oi you there...you're mine." His voice was almost a growl. He had been waiting a long time for this.

Fuu ended up falling asleep while waiting for Mugen to get back. By the time she woke up it was dark again but the moon's light was bright enough for her to see. She didn't have any supplies to make a fire so she would have to make due without it. She finally had enough energy to make it to her kimono. She inspected it with what little light she had, it had been cleaned- there was a dark discolouration around the entry mark. She fingered the hole that made its way through both layers. Sitting down she pulled the small sewing kit from her bag and began the repair process. She knew the stitches would suffer because the lack of light but she could always pull the threads out later.

"..I wonder what Mugen's doing...ACK!" Pricking her finger on the needle a small bubble of flood formed. Putting the tip of her finger between her pouty lips she cleaned it. _'Jeez...even just thinking about that jerk causes me to get hurt.'_

* * *

"ACHOO!" Wiping his nose on his sleeve Mugen had spilled his sake. _'Why do I feel like I'm getting in trouble?'_

A soft hand with a cloth started to dab at the spilled sake. Upon closer inspection her face actually wasn't bad at all. Her dark eyes were large and angular, which made it look like her eyes were alway half closed- but he supposed it had some charm to them. Her skin was darker than the usual cream he was used to- but not by much. You could tell she would go out into the sun, but not for long. Perhaps it was a tan that was already fading. She had large voluptuous lips that were begging to be placed somewhere- Mugen couldn't help but imagine them on certain places on his body. His eyes traced all over her body as she was leaning in, cleaning up his mess.

"Oi...why don't you forget about that and give me my money's worth?"

Surprising him, the prostitute seemed to smile when she practically sat on his lap and leaned on him. Before he could bring his hands up to touch her, she pushed him down and straddled him. Slowly she shrugged off her kimono so it hung loosely around her elbows. He wasn't use to aggressive women, and to be honest he liked it. He was getting turned on on a completely different level. He grinned as her breasts were barely covered by the material of her kimono. Her body was shapely, and the shadows made by the lantern made shadows dance over every line of her. Her stomach was tight and toned. He gripped her thighs, almost digging the tips of his digits into her- surprising to him, her legs weren't as soft as he expected, just like her stomach they were hard. She pulled one of her hair pins out, letting some of her hair unravel. Her lips were plump and painted red, she seemed to lick her lips and popped them before leaning in to kiss him. She smelled unbelievably sweet- it was somehow familiar.

Grabbing her by her wrists he changed their position. Slamming her onto her back he was between her legs-opening herself up to him. Holding her wrists tighter he looked down at her with wild eyes.

"Who sent you?" Squeezing her wrists tighter he looked as her face barely reacted to the pressure. "-and spare me the bullshit."

"W-what do you mean?" Finally, her face winced with the pain on her wrist but yet she gripped the hair pin like her life depended on it.

"You might have nice tits but there ain't no prostitute with muscles like that- you've been trained. Now...you have to the count to 10 to come clean or else I'll bust your wrists."

Pursing her lips, the woman spat onto Mugen's face before bringing her leg in, kicking him in the gut. Using the force of her own kick and with the loosening of his grip on her, the woman rolled backwards onto her feet. Putting quite a bit of distance between the two.

"You should have just stayed quiet you idiot. At least that way you could have died quickly." Pulling the other large pins out of her hair, she stood ready to attack. The pins were long and sharp- like large needles they reflected the light off of them. They had to be at least 6 or 7 inches long.

"Ya know...Its been awhile since I killed a woman, and I don't want to make a habit of it." Standing up, Mugen cranked his neck to one side, cracking it. "So..what's it gonna be?"

"Don't you look down on me just because I'm a woman!"

At ninja speed the woman lunged herself towards Mugen, swinging the needles towards his neck. With little effort Mugen swayed from side to side, dodging each attempted attack. But she kept at it, eventually she leaned to her right- bringing her left leg up she kicked Mugen's side where his still healing wound was. Almost like she knew it was there.

Hooking his arm down he gripped her leg so she wasn't able to move anymore, then he swiped her other leg out from under her, causing the both of them to fall to the ground once again. Only this time Mugen sat on her stomach. In the frantic movement the woman was able to jab both of her needles into Mugen, one on his hand that had grasped her leg and the other where his neck met his shoulder. The both of them already seemed exhausted as their breaths were deep and shallow.

"Now tell me! Who sent you and why?" Of course he had an idea why, someone can't just waltz in and kill 3 yakuza members without a price being putting on their head. But who told them who he was, or how to find him? It would have had to been one of the people watching.

Silence.

"Bitch, I asked you a question!" Looking to the needle that pierced fully through his hand he slammed it down onto her own.

Biting her lip she held back voicing her pain. "You can't be that stupid-" she cackled while sweat dropped from her brown. "-but then again you left one alive." Her head shot to the left upon impact of Mugen's fist. For a moment he thought he might have knocked her out but apparently she was just surprised.

 _'Shit...there must have been four instead of three. DAMN IT!'_ His fist still clenched, he couldn't help but let his anger take over as he began to shake. "Oh yea? Who's to say I didn't let him go on purpose? Its been awhile since I've had some fun...some real fun."

"You can't be serious! All over Osaka...no all over Kansai they are looking for you. You're tattoos, your scars- we know every detail! Even if you kill me, you will never escape."

"'An' who says I'll try to esca-"

"Your friend...that little girl is probably already dead by now, unless they're still having their fun. Buta especially like its when they scream."

"Well..."

His voice unnerved, and his shaking ceased. His hair veiled over most of his face, like a predator in the shadows. His eyes stone cold yet somehow they burned into her as they peaked through his locks. She knew she was in trouble- never before had she seen such eyes. It was like his pupils disappeared and she was staring into a pit of darkness. Quickly pulling his hand up, he let the needle go all the way through his tissues, freeing himself from it. He then pulled the other needle from himself, and held it close to her eye- less than a hair away. Wide eyed she didn't even dare breath or blink- any slight movement and her eye would be done for.

"If she's already dead that just means I get to take my time with you, don't it?"

* * *

"Ah Momo-san! Where are you?" Fuu trudged through the overgrown bushes. She wound up rolling the bottom hem of her kimono up over her knees, as the overgrown foliage was more of an obstacle as she thought it would be. With every step she brought her knees high and stretched her legs out as far as they would go. The moon light was her only guide as she went looked up to watch any movements in the tree branches. She had followed Momo this far but she seemed to have lost track of the little critter. The squirrel scurried away from Fuu and out a window once she had finally fixed the holes in her kimono. But Momo poked her head back into the room, like she was waiting for Fuu to follow her. Looking over her shoulder she could just barely make out the dark shadow that was the run down shack. Momo always had a habit of running off and coming back, so maybe she should just wait for Momo to come back on her own then. Turning around, Fuu decided to do just that. One good thing about all this rest she's been getting is that her muscles weren't sore anymore, other than for obvious reasons she felt fine. A loud gurgle broke through her surroundings. Hugging her stomach Fuu hunched over. "Sooo hungry! Muuuugen...where are you?!"

"-I heard it come from over here."

 _'Huh? Who's that?'_ Looking in the direction of the shack that was only a few yards from her, Fuu could see some shadowed figures slowly making their way closer. Ducking down into the large bushes she watched them.

"This must be it. Old man Terazawa said it wasn't far." Four men snickered as they seemed to group together. Fuu was well hidden but she was able to see all the men clearly, unless they really looked they wouldn't be able to see her. They looked like a group of yankees, all around their mid-twenties. Some had piercings in their brows and noses, their clothing were all oversized and baggy making them seem small and lanky. Each had a hairstyle of their own that made Fuu wonder what's happening to her generation's tastes and standards. One had his head shaved bald, another seemed to have something called a "mohawk". She had seen a mohawk before when she got caught up in the human trafficking ring a few years back. Remembering it now she still hated small cramped spaces, it reminded her of being stuffed in that barrel. But at least this guy didn't dye his hair a sickly green. One man had his hair done in a style she had never seen before, his scalp was covered in rows upon rows of small braids, and they hung low past his shoulders. One guy seemed to look pretty standard in every way, his face looked like it was a bit bruised but that probably wasn't uncommon in their line of work.

 _'He looks...familiar?..'_ Arching an eyebrow Fuu leaned her face out a bit more to get a better look.

Out from the direction that the men came from, one last large figure finally emerged. He was wearing a traditional yukata that seemed to clash with the yankee's. He was incredibly tall, he towered above the other's, though he wasn't "large" he was definitely a bigger build. From where she was looking it looked like his hands could crush her skull if he wanted. His hair was dark as the night and it was slicked back, one strand was array and fell over his forehead. His ears were filled with piercings that reflected the moon's light, and he sported a thick goatee. She couldn't help but be scared of him- just from looking at him she knew he was the ring leader of this little misfit band. And his large sword at his hip didn't go unnoticed. It wasn't like a katana, it seemed to be longer and thicker near the end with a slight hook. With a nod of his head, two of the men kicked the door to the shack in.

"Huh? No one's here."

"Terazawa only said he had seen that traveller come and go out of the woods...he wasn't certain that she would be here."

"Here! Buta! This was inside." The man with the bald head came out of the shack holding Fuu's tote bag and he handed it to the large man that was apparently named Buta. Taking the bag Buta looked and played with the material between his fingers before he handed it over to the quiet "standard" looking one.

Nodding his head, the "standard" guy couldn't help but smirk. "It's hers, she had it the other night."

Looking to their surroundings it was as if Buta knew exactly where Fuu was because his line of vision stopped right above the bush where she was hiding. "She's not far...not without this." His voice was deep, almost too deep to be real.

"Should we wait for her to come back?"

"Nah, she'll see the door is broken and she'll run for it. We should look for her ourselves."

Without any further discussion four of the men spread out in different directions. Slowly they stepped through the bushes, she could hear their every step rustle, making her heart beat uncontrollably. Luckily the mohawk guy who seemed to have been walking in her direction walked right past her, not even bothering to look down around in the bushes, his sight remained up. For now her only chance would be staying as still and as quiet as she possibly could until they gave up. Her legs began to shake beneath her, she had been crouching for what felt like an hour but in reality it was probably only 20 minutes. The four men were still off in every direction looking for her whereas Buta was standing by the shack.

 _Grrrrrrggglllllll_

Her face went white as her stomach let out an echoing cry for food. There was no way that they didn't hear that, how couldn't they? Her head dashed in every direction to see if any of them had turned her way, she couldn't hear or see anyone coming, but... Buta was gone. A strong and firm grasp on the back of her head weaved itself into her hair- pulling up to her feet. Barely touching her toes to the ground Fuu reached back and held onto the wrist to help balance herself and to ease the tension on her scalp.

"There you are little mouse..."

* * *

Breathing heavily, Mugen adjusted his haori as he wiped some blood and sweat from his chin. He hated to admit it but adrenaline was flowing through him at an intense pace, his blood flowed just as fast. It had been years since he acted out in such a way, not since he had raided villages along the coast during his pirating days. He did what he wanted, when he wanted and _who_ he wanted. Whether they like it or not he would get his way, and he would leave a bloody mess afterwards. For a bit there Mugen thought he had left all that behind him but the disheveled corpse in front of him only reminded him that he would never be able to escape who he really was.

He was feeling reckless tonight.

 _"-Buta especially likes it when they scream."_

Standing up, Mugen cracked his neck and opened the shoji doors with full force. Bamboo on bamboo was the starting mark for the events that would take place in the hallways that night. It didn't matter to him if he didn't have his sword, he would take everyone on with his fists until he could get it, and it didn't matter how bruised and bloody he would get because he had no intentions on stopping. It wasn't until he got down the first slight of stairs that he ran into anyone. A group of 8 men were leaning in the hall way, hands on their katana's ready for whatever came their way. Unfortunately for them- it was Mugen. His adrenaline still pumping and his face still splattered with the blood of the woman upstairs, he was ready for more. Nonchalantly Mugen took off his geta's, slipping one onto each hand and then he raised an eyebrow at the group as if he were saying "Who's first?' . Apparently 3 of them wanted to get the first taste of him. He deflected the first blade with his right hand and geta, once the blade was out of the way he uppercut with his left hand, and kicked the guy backwards into the other two oncoming men. Using their falling momentum, Mugen followed them as they flew back, jumping over their bodies into the group of 5 other men who all unsheathed their katana's at once. Like a tornado Mugen spun himself- deflecting all of their attempted attacks on the geta's on his hands. Grabbing one man after another he tossed them into each other's blades. He didn't care if he fought "dirty", everyone dies eventually- and in the end the things you did when you were alive don't matter when you're rotting in the ground. One of the men he had knocked over at the start finally got up and lunged themselves at Mugen. With the same intensity that he displayed while playing baseball, Mugen rocketed his geta's at two men, hitting both on the face. The narrow hallway actually made it easier for Mugen to fight this many men at once. It limited their movements and directions of attacks. Barely dodging the man he slipped behind his arm, grabbing it and his sword. Swinging around in a circle, the man stumbled as he tried to keep his footing under Mugen's forced directions. Knocking down more men Mugen finally pulled the blade into his own hands, slicing the previous owner in one big motion. _'Two left...'_ The remaining two men looked terrified, as their companions lay in their own blood- and their foe had only just gotten his hands on a blade. It wasn't as exciting as he had hoped, the last two tried to get him one at a time. They let their nerves get the best of them and they got sloppy in their forms and defence, almost instantly getting cut down by Mugen. This time he was going to make sure they were all dead, walking up to each body he thrust the borrowed blade through each of their chests before dropping it to claim his own sword back.

The black sheath hit his back as he ran as hard and fast as he could. All he could imagine was what that "Buta" freak could be doing to Fuu right now. He left her there defenseless and she was still in rough shape from the other night. _'Damn it Fuu, keep it together until I get there.'_ His geta's barely managed to stay on his feet once he finally hit the thick bush that would lead him to the shack. He leapt and vaulted over every bush that got in his way, until it came into view. Stopping in his tracks Mugen looked as a dim light illuminated from out of the shack- the door was replaced with the large cloth that Fuu was using as a blanket. On the outside, four men were passing around a pipe- they were completely distracted. Those bastards thought he was dead, that was why they were so relaxed. Picking up a large rock, Mugen tossed it just a few feet away from him- he would lure them out one by one. None of them reacted.

"I'm gonna go take a lead. I can't stand to listen to that anymore."

A guy with weird braided hair started making his way towards Mugen. Making himself flat against a tree he waited until the braided hair punk was within reach. Grabbing him by the collar, Mugen slammed the braided hair guy against the tree all while holding his sword to his throat.

"What can't you stand to listen to anymore?"

"Buta has that girl in there. S-she's been putting up a fight but he doesn't seem to be letting her go-"

"Who told you where to find us?" Mugen wasn't giving the man a chance to even breath, he wanted answers and he was going to make sure he got them.

"The old man at the Inn." Quickly and silently Mugen slid the blade across unnamed man's throat and letting him drop to the ground with a "thud".

"Gota, what was that? You alright"

Walking out from the shadows, Mugen had the blunt end of the blade stretched over his shoulders. He had one thing on his mind, and that was to kill everyone and anyone that stood in his way. Tonight he was going to live up to his reputation. The men continued to pass the pipe back and forth, blowing out clouds of smokes between handoffs. The first one to notice Mugen looked absolutely terrified, he was facing Mugen in the small "circle" that they sat in.

"I-it's him!"

Turning to look over his shoulder, the guy with the mohawk didn't even get an opportunity to see who he was up against. Like hacking a piece of wood, Mugen without restraint or regard for his blade, hacked down onto the mans skull. For just a moment, his blade was stuck in the gash, setting his foot on the man's back Mugen used it as leverage to free his weapon. While his foot was still in the motion, Mugen swung it to the side- getting some baldy in the face before slicing down his abdomen. The two men didn't even have a chance to yell or cry for mercy. The third man was scurrying back, trying to distance himself from Mugen as much as he could but he couldn't get his wobbly legs to stay under him. Mugen couldn't help but smirk at the pathetic display in front of him. The man seemed to have a bruised face, and he seemed scared of Mugen before he had even done anything.

 _The momentary distraction resulted in a deep slice on his side. 'Ah fuck it!' He had enough of playing around. With a spinning kick, Mugen kept his blade out, gutting one man where he stood and his foot cracking the jaw of the other._

"Ah fuck... so.. you were the one that got away?" Inching his way closer to the man, Mugen couldn't help but want him to suffer a slow death. If he had just died that night, they probably wouldn't have been found this quickly, they wouldn't have had all this trouble. And Fuu- _'Shit, Fuu!'_ He had been so distracted by the men that he forgot what Fuu might have been dealing with. "Listen I ain't got a lot of time to waste so I need you to stay still and die. Got it?" As much as he wanted to prolong his death Mugen had more important business to attend to. The man stopped scurrying as reality settled into him- he was going to die either way. Bringing the end of his sword down, Mugen didn't completely slice through the man- he held back. So rather that dying instantly, the son of bitch woulld bleed out. Finally turning his attention to the shack, Mugen hesitated for a moment, preparing for the variety of scenarios that he might walk in on. He was on the other side of the cloth and everything was quiet. He could hear the fire in the pit cracking and popping as it burned. Using his left arm, Mugen casually walked in- like nothing was wrong.

"So you finally showed up?"

Standing on the left side of the small shack was a Man who by himself took up most of the space. Even though he was bare foot, he stood taller than Mugen with his getas on. He was just finishing tying his yukata, which was done very loosely- his chest was still revealed through the He was trying to make a show out of what he had done to Fuu, or at least what Mugen assumed had happened. His eyes darted behind the man where Fuu sat in the corner, her back facing him and her hands bound by rope. Her kimono was still technically on her but it was spread open and hung down behind her, her bound hands didn't allow for it to be removed. Her bandages that were around her shoulder and chest had been removed, and her small frame was shaking- she was holding back her sobs.

"What the hell did you do to her?"

Running his hands through his hair, he slicked it back again with a grin. "There's not much a man and woman can do alone is there?" Reaching to the side, Buta grabbed a handful of Fuu's hair- forcing her back to her feet. "She's a bit older than the ones I usually get, but I think I'll keep her." Leaning in he placed his face on the nook of her neck and inhaled before making eye contact with Mugen and licked up Fuu's neck up to her tear dripping jawline. The action caused Fuu to clench her eyes tighter and attempted to turn herself away from him but the grip he had made it impossible.

"You sick fuck...how bout you let her go and we settle this one on one?"

Tossing Fuu against the ball behind him, Buta unsheathed his unique sword. The space was incredibly small, with four or five steps the two men would be face to face. and the small fire pit was dead center. It didn't offer the best space for a fight. Mugen had the upper hand because he was closest to the door, but Fuu was on the other side. _'No problem... just cut him down like everyone else.'_

Bolting at Buta with his incredible speed, Mugen thought for sure that he could at the very least force Buta to dodge, to move away from Fuu. However, Mugen was stopped like he was nothing more than a mosquito. Buta stood, barely changing his stance, all he had done was move his blade a few inches to block Mugen's. Pushing back away from him, Mugen tried again, and again, and again. But each time he was met with the same thing, a barely moving man with an iron glare and an even tougher defense.

She watched with tear filled eyes. She hated how weak she was, how much Mugen was trying for her and yet they had barely even talked since they found each other again. And what had she done? Absolutely nothing, she had gotten beaten, tossed around and...and she was sick of it. The swords clanged time and time again while Mugen moved with such speed she could barely keep up, Buta barely moved and yet he was able to deflect anything Mugen sent his way. For about the millionth time she tried pulling her hands out of the rope bounds but it only seemed to dig deeper into her skin. She needed to cut it. And just like that, fate decided to pull on her thread again. From the window above her, a small fluffy face poked in, taking a look at everything happening around. Small beady eyes looked down to see its friend in distress. Jumping down with its limbs stretched, it glided down onto the dishevelled kimono stuck on Fuu's arms.

"Momo-san!" Though she was excited she kept her voice low. "Chew the ropes Momo! quick!" It really was a mystery to her, how this little squirrel seemed to understand everything she said. As much as Momo brought trouble to her, Momo also saved he more times than she could count. On the lonely nights especially Momo was always there, to keep Fuu from the dark voids in her mind. Tiny whiskers tickled against Fuu's wrists until she felt the bounds fall from her. The relief was instantaneous, as Fuu brought her wrists in front of her and rubbed them. Fixing her kimono she slowly stood up, and stared at Buta's large broad back. What could she do?...What should she do? Her line of vision went up, to the old sagging ceiling.

Mugen knew Fuu had somehow unbound her hands, and she seemed to have control over her emotions again. But this son of a bitch was really starting to piss him off. No matter what Mugen tried to do he would just get blocked, even weirder was that Buta wasn't trying to do anything else. And there wasn't much room for him to get creative.

 _'Mugen, look up! look up!'_ From being Buta, Fuu kept on waving her arms and pointing up. But he seemed to be paying no attention to her, did she chance saying anything? Should she try running past Buta? _'No...I would just get in the way...'_ Looking up over her shoulder she looked to the window. It seemed quite small but she might be able to fit. The issue would be hoisting herself up to get out. Bending at the knees she only had one chance to get this right. _'Ok..one...two...'._ "THREE!" Jumping up she managed to get both arms over the window ledge which was held securely under her armpits. She had to push through the pain on her left side. Her feet hit against the walls as she tried to get her footing so she could "walk" up the wall.

"Damn it, how stupid can you be?!" Buta was about to turn around, the stupid girl yelled out "three" and get feet were banging against the wall. Grabbing the cloth draped over the door way, Mugen tossed it over Buta- covering his upper body. "Hurry, get the hell outta here!" While Buta's eyes were covered, Mugen managed to disarm him- though he was aiming for his forearm, Mugen hit Buta's hand, cutting off some digits.

As if someone had hoisted her, Fuu fell over and out of the window. "Ow!" Rubbing the point of impact with the ground, Fuu was happy she was finally out of that situation. A thick scent burned in Fuu's nostrils- it was pungent and bitter. Looking around the corner to the front of the shack, there laid a kiseru pipe, the ashes spilled out the bowl and the dry grass around started to smoke. Quickly, Fuu ran to it , stepping over the dead bodies and clasped her hands around the ashes, lightly blowing until flames finally grew. It didn't take long until the small flames grew throughout the overgrown foliage and to the dried wood of the shack.

As soon as Buta was covered by the cloth, Mugen threw himself into the larger man with his blade guiding him. He knew from the feeling behind the blade that he had finally got the bastard. The two bodies crashed into the wall- debris fell from the ceiling as the shack shook around them. He finally understood why Fuu kept looking up- the place was barely standing and it wouldn't take much to bring it down. Pulling his blade from Buta, only the very tip had been painted red- a shallow wound. But Mugen persisted by crashing his body into Buta's again and again until a loud crack and creak filled the room. Grabbing the corner of the cloth over Buta, Mugen twisted it and somehow managed to wrap it around Buta as they switched positions. Mugen's back now faced the wall and the struggling man's back to him, Mugen kicked him down onto the fire pit. Sweat dripped from his brow as he realized that it was strangely hot in the small shack, and the same bitter scent that found Fuu also made its way into Mugen's nose. He had been so busy with the human brick wall that he didn't notice the cracking and creaking weren't just from the weight crashing into the wall, the shack was on fire and it was spreading to the inside.

"GET OUT OF THERE NOW MUGEN. YOU IDIOT!"

Looking at Buta's flailing body as the cloth around him caught on fire Mugen was satisfied to just let the stick bastard cook like the pig her was. Like a canon ball, Mugen burst out of the flame engulfed shack like it was nothing. She watched as the colour red floated through the air like time slowed itself down. His knees tucked in close to him, his arms crossed in front of his face to shield himself from any flames but she could see his eyes despite the obstacles. Sweat dripped from his hairline, down the line of his scarred eyebrow. Behind him, his loosened haori flapped like a cape, then like a firework in the sky, his limbs shot out, landing himself safely on the ground.

"Mugen, we need to go!" Pulling on his sleeve, her hand no longer trembled. Tilting his head up he looked down at her. The flames reflected in his eyes, and in them she knew that what laid beneath was far more dangerous than what ever came their way but she trusted him. She trusted the red that her fingers held onto. She trusted the red that burned hotter than any fire.

"I ain't quite done yet girly..."

* * *

Looking over her shoulder she watched as the once tranquil woods had been consumed by the fire. The smoke rose high into the night sky, covering some of the night stars from her view. But more importantly, she watched as the large building that she once worked at slowly begin to be engulfed in the same destructive power. Mugen guided her back to a road but then he left again. He didn't say goodbye, or that he would be back- he just left. So she follow the dark country road until she could no longer feel the heat from the flames. He had done enough for her already but she knew better than to expect any more from him. Fixing the positioning of her bag she knew she was on her own again. She couldn't allow herself to cry- because she knew if she did, her knees would fall out from under her and she wouldn't be able to stop herself.

Footsteps that weren't hers filled her ears, so she watched. Elbows pointed up and a head full of wild hair made their way over the small hump on the road. Smelling of smoke and the copper stain of blood, her companion in red peered at her as he walked past. "Let's go."

Picking up her heavy feet she walked next to him, just like she had always done and like a day never went by that they weren't by each other's side.


	5. Chapter 4 - Dumplings & Commiserations

**This chapter has a lot of talking. I debated and fought with myself the entire time I was writing this one...I wanted to postpone a certain conversation that happens, but no matter what it seemed this needed to happen in order to move on. I appreciate the reviews, and the continuing support! Every single time I get a email in regards to this story I get butterflies. It makes me want to be able to put out chapters faster! But I have been having issues trying to keep Mugen true to himself. It's so hard to stay in character when my own desires speak differently. I've probably reread and reedited this chapter more times than the other's combined and I'm still not that confident in it. I feel like it's missing something- but I absolutely do not want to rush the development of their relationship.**

 **So I know that I myself have a hard time visualizing Fuu being older, because well she has such a distinct look from the other girls/women that you see in the show. If you take a look at Episode 8 The Art of Altercation there is that character "Budou Kiba" (the wife of the man that fits on Fuu and she goes on a rant about how it's hard being a girl with sex appeal). Well in the episode the man that hits on her makes a comment saying she is just like "you know who" when she was young. You know who, is Budou Kiba (his wife), and the woman that both Jin and Mugen share a drink with. And This very episode is on while I'm typing this, and wow- Budou Kiba and Fuu are the same. Straight up, Budou Kiba is what Fuu will be when she's in her 30's, so this definitely helps me visualize Fuu as a (almost) 18 year old.**

 **Sunflower and Therp thank you for your reviews! I really appreciate every bit of feedback I get, it really makes it easier for me to press on in the evenings to get this done.**

 **Chapter 4-** **Dumplings & Commiserations**

* * *

Taking a deep breath, Fuu wasn't sure if she was ready for this. It was a moment she was both excited and yet nervous for. Bent down on her knees, she couldn't help but brace herself with her two hands down in front. Did she really want to do this now? Maybe she should wait...but Mugen said it would be fine.

"Do you..think it will hurt?" Looking over her shoulder at him, her eyebrow seemed to twitch as she forced a smile on her face. She was beyond nervous- never in a million years did she ever think she would trust Mugen with something like this.

"The hell if I know, just take it off already." He loomed over her kneeling body from behind.

"Fine! I will...jeez." She stared at her reflection in the water- all bruising and swelling on her face had healed and disappeared. The cut on her upper lip was on its final step to healing into a scar, but her nose was still a mystery to her. Mugen tapped his geta in a tune of annoyance on the rocks of the riverbank.

"Hurry up already. " He spat at her. It had already been over 2 weeks since the incidents at Osaka happened. After Mugen set the Inn on fire they left the hellish events behind them and they walked, but they didn't talk about it. Neither of them made mention on what happened, or why it happened or what to do next. Mugen wasn't good at comforting and he sure as hell didn't want to trigger her water works. She seemed somewhat normal, a bit quieter than she used to be, but that didn't bother him one bit.

"But..what if it looks bad? What if I'm cursed to a life with a ugly bumpy nose?! How will I ever get married?!"

Scratching his head he took back that last thought, she was still just as noisy and annoying as she was before. "It's not like you were gonna find a husband before." His words turned into a half laugh as he poked fun at her. She was always an easy target, and her reactions were always hilarious to him. At least they were when she paid attention to him.

 _'Breath in...breath out...breath in..'_ She repeated to herself internally again and again as she slowly pulled of the bandaging that held the mold in place. The adhesive pulled at her skin and fine hairs of her face, leaving her skin red where they used to be. The outlines of each bandage were dark, where dust, dirt and sweat had accumulated over the last two weeks. ' _Last one...'_ Slowly pulling off the last bandage that was placed vertically over the middle of her nose, the hard mold followed it- finally revealing the full state of her face.

"Ah? So are you a freak or not?" With his hands in his pockets he tried looking around her to take a peak.

Fuu didn't move, she just stared at her reflection, her long hair fell out from behind her ears so he couldn't even get a sideview. Not that he really cared, or at least that's what he told himself. But after looking at the mess on her face for the last two weeks he wanted to see what was beneath it. He hadn't seen her face as is since they parted ways. First she was covered in blood, then it was swollen and bruised, and the final piece was the bandaging over her nose. He had some idea on what she looked like- after all how much could a person change in 3 years? Her shoulders and arms seemed to vibrate as her face was still out of his view.

' _Ah shit...'_ He assumed the worse. The girl was going to be a freak, well more of a freak than what she already was.

"It's perfect... THANK GOODNESS!" Sitting back onto her heels she finally looked up at him. Her eyes were as bright and lively as ever, and it was more than just the swollen tissues that were gone. It seemed her face shed all of the baby weight. Her cheek bones seemed more define, and rosy. Her nose was still small with a slight upward turn at the end-just like that squirrel she always had with her. And her lips-.

Standing up he turned away from her. What the hell was he looking at? She was still the same Fuu from before, so why was he staring just cause her face was healed? "Perfect? Pffftt, yea right. You still look like a baboons ass to me."

Splashing some water in her face she didn't hear the comment. She used her hands to wash off the dark marks left by the bandages. It felt nice on her face, she couldn't remember the last time she was actually able to clean herself or have a bath at that. Standing up, Fuu did some combinations of stretches, perking herself up. "Alright! So now what Mugen?"

"Whaddya mean?"

"I mean...now what? Like-" Fidgeting with her fingers she wasn't exactly sure how to put it into words. "Umm..where are we- I mean you, going?"

Scratching his chin, he wasn't entirely sure on how to answer that. He never intended on seeing her again, let alone travelling with her. He was acting purely out of instinct, he had gotten so use to fighting off whoever threatened him or her that he almost forgot that he wasn't a "hired bodyguard" anymore. He asked himself this many times over the last two weeks, but he still didn't have an answer. Maybe just in it for the hell of it? What even compelled him to get involved with her the first time?

 **Grrrggglll**

 _'Was that her stomach or mine?'_ It really had been a few days since they had something half decent to eat. Scratching his stomach he realized how empty he really felt, and like a lightbulb, the answer came to him. Dumplings.

"Listen girly...I'm just here for my 200 dumplings."

"200?! The deal was 100!"

"Bullshit, it was." Turning to her he held up one finger. "100, from dealing with those guys at the teahouse 3 years ago-" He then held up another finger. "-and another 100 from saving your sorry ass from the yakuza."

Frozen stiff she stared at his two fingers. The guy was right. She couldn't even deny it, she really did wager 200 dumplings. "So..once you get your 200 dumplings you'll leave again?" Again? Why did she say it like that? She didn't honestly expect him to stick around did she, after all she was feeling better and she had her savings with her.

"Well I ain't go no other reason to stay do I?"

"Fine! 200 dumplings it is. I'll just give you some money so you can buy them yourself and then you can get back to your life!" Digging in her kimono sleeve, she realized that her coin purse was gone. Maybe in her bag? Dumping out her bag, her money was no where to be seen. "I-I swear I grabbed it! Where could've it-" Why was she even asking, she knew where it went. "MUUUUUGEN!" She wanted to hit him, and hit him hard. Going up to him she started beating on him with closed fists.

"What the hell are you yelling at me for!?" He knew why, he almost forgot all about it but it took her longer to realize it was gone than he had expected. "If ya want I could have let you bleed out and die but no. I went and got you a damn doctor." He wanted to act mad at her, but she had the strength of a child- it was more annoying than anything.

"Ah.." Stopping her fit she didn't consider that an option. But still...there was a lot of money in there. "You didn't use all of it..did you?" From the look on his face, she knew the answer. Her facial muscles couldn't help but twitch as she tried to keep her anger from boiling out. There was enough money in there for her to rent out a new place, or at least she could have stayed at a hotel until she figured something out. But now she really was left with nothing except for the clothes on her back, and what little she had in her bag. "Well, how much do you have?"

"Why does that matter?"

"Because, if you want your dumplings then you better make sure I survive that long. I haven't eaten anything in 2 days. And plus you went ahead and spent all of my money! Don't think for a minute that I believe you spent it all on a doctor- I know you better than that Mugen. And not to mention its been over 2 weeks since I've had a bath. How do you expect me, a girl, to continue on like thi-"

Grabbing her right shoulder and placing the other hand over her mouth Mugen was clearly pissed off. Damn, did she ever know how to strike a nerve in him. She was probably the only person to ever piss him off this much and get to live after. "Shut the hell up for a minute would ya?" He had some money, well more than some. He still had all of his money that was paid to him for his days work at the crooked vase shop, and then there was the money he pulled off of Yue's dead body. "If I find a place for ya to sleep, will you stop all this nagging?" She nodded her head ferociously. She tried to say something under the pressure of his hand, but it was no more than a mumble to his ears. The nod was enough to satisfy his request of silence so he moved his hand.

"-and a bath!"

"Fine."

"-and some food."

"FINE! Damn it just stop with the bitching." He didn't want to admit it either but he was thinking the same thing. A place to crash would be nice- and hot food would be even better. Raiding local gardens wasn't enough. He needed some red meat, and any fish that would have been in the river would be gone by now. The damn girl doesn't know what volume control is. "Let's go already."

Quickly, Fuu bent down and picked up the contents of her bag and slung it back over her shoulder. She couldn't help but be happy; finally she was going to get to have a bath, a warm place to sleep and food! Even a bowl of rice would be a godsend at this point. Of course she could still out eat anyone, just name the time and place- she'd be there. The fact that he agreed to use his own money was nothing short of a miracle, but she knew that as soon as they got to wherever they went, he would probably ditch her to find some cheap floozy and booze. Skipping behind Mugen, she seemed to have gotten all of her energy back. She couldn't help but hum a happy song (after all, she was going to eat some food and have a bath)- it was a habit she picked up when she found herself travelling alone. Back then she wasn't use to it being quiet, so naturally she sought out a way to break the silence by herself. Although thinking back, it was usually her that was talking. Mugen would bark back at her and Jin would sometimes let her know he was listening with a simple "Hm" and nod of the head. The three of them really were quite the group- none of them had a thing in common. They each came from different walks of life, each carried their own values and morals. But yet...they got a long just as much as they clashed. She would forever be grateful for their impact on her life and everything that they did for her. Even as much as Mugen upset her, she knew that her life wouldn't be the way it was now without him. She never would have known what her father's face looked like, or the reason he left her and her mother. But the same could be said about Jin. If Jin wasn't there, Mugen would have ran off at the first chance he got (well..he did do that), but because of their personal competition he stuck around. Well, that's what Fuu liked to believe anyway. Jin on the other hand probably stuck around because of his own moral code- he made a promise and he was going to keep it. ' _Wait...Jin tried to run away too...'_ Ugh..all this thinking was making her head hurt- she really shouldn't try to over think things. The two buffoons stayed until the end like they promised, and that's all that mattered.

* * *

 _She looked at the two exhausted bodies as they sprawled behind the wooden prison bars. The prefectural governor really did a number on them, just thinking about what they must have gone through gave her the heeby-jeebies. The one man that started the entire debacle at the teahouse seemed to be trying to crawl his way to the front._

 _"Oh, wow... They really put you through the wringer, didn't they?" Hands on her knees she looked down at them, they both seemed as surprised she was there as she was. She wasn't sure if she would have been able to make it past that perverted balding guard._

 _"Hey, you're..." The man in red looked at her. His face seemed incredible swollen, especially over his right eye._

 _"...that girl from the teahouse." The unknown samurai looked just as bad as the other one, but his face didn't have much other than the odd scrape._

 _"Do you want to know why I'm here?" She couldn't help but smirk as she had them in the palms of her hands. At this point she was their only option. Well, they could choose to be executed tomorrow but that was unlikely._

 _"-Not really." It was the criminal dressed in red again. Damn he was quick at retorts._

 _"Oh, really? Goodbye then." Standing up straight, she didn't hesitate to start walking away._

 _"I'm kidding! Hold up!"_

 _"Listen, if you promise you'll do something for me, I'll help you get out of here." With her body still half turned away from them, she reached in her sleeve and pulled out the long pick._

 _"Are you serious?" He couldn't believe it. Why would a girl like her be in a place like this, and offering to break him and four eyes out no less. Either she had balls or she was just down right stupid. But either way, she was his only option- there would be nothing keeping him from just running off on his own. If the damn girl was going to put her neck on the line for him then that was her own problem._

 _Finally, after making them agree to her terms, she started turning and jimmying the pick in the lock. She had seen it done before, but she never did it herself. It always looked so easy- just find the nook, and pop it up._

 _"Huh? It's not turning..."_

 _"So, what's this promise you want us to make?"_

 _For a moment she stopped her attempt at picking the lock- but she didn't look at the two men."There's a samurai who smells of sunflowers. I want you to find him for me."_

 _"Sunflowers?"_

 _"-Find her?"_

 _"-Is sher over there?"_

 _Turning from the direction of the guard's voices, the glasses samurai who kept to himself looked desperate. "Hurry."_

 _Her hands began to get shakey, pushing the pick in more it seemed to be jammed on the inside. Turning it one final time, a cold sweat dropped down her back. The pick snapped into two pieces. She couldn't help but release a gasp of shock._

 _"What happened?" Mugen_

 _"It broke off." She felt defeated, but she knew she couldn't give up. Who else could she ask? Who else was at reckless and skilled as these two? She only saw them fight once but that was enough. There was no doubt in her mind that with them by her side, she could find him. She could find the samurai who smelled of sunflowers..._

 _"I found her!"_

 _"GEH, Oh crap!" Dropping the other half of the pick, she rose to her feet and ran as fast as she could as a group of guards chased her._

 _-"Hold it!"_

 _The girl in pink was far out of his view. But all of their footsteps could be heard- she was putting up a good fight. But her panicked yelp suggested she might have ran into some trouble. "Why the hell did she even bother coming here...?"_

* * *

Rubbing her belly she felt a lot better- but she wasn't quite full though. That would take about 30 more plate fulls of food. But she gladly accepted the 4 bowls of rice and the fried eel Mugen got her. She honestly didn't know where they were, she had seen a sign that said "Fukui" sometime ago, but Fukui was only about a 3 days trip from Osaka. They had been walking for over 2 weeks already so they should have gotten farther than that. Granted, they took a lot of hidden trails and walked through bushes and she didn't take the time to look at what direction the sign was pointing. They also took a long detour when they followed the flow of a river. Somehow Mugen was able to strip down and bath in the cold water but she wasn't. Even putting her hands in the water to get a drink chilled her to the bone. But despite it all, she was happy. Tired, dirty, but happy.

"Muuugen...just pick a place already.."

The wannabe city they were in seemed to only have three Inns. Nothing too fancy or extravagant but for some reason Mugen kept on walking laps around and around, looking at the places over and over again. His posture was as bad as ever as he kept his hands in his pockets. The sun was already set, and Fuu just wanted to have a bath and go to sleep. Mugen was wasting precious relax time.

"There." Suddenly stopping, the fatigued girl bumped into Mugen's back. Rubbing her nose she looked over to the destined place.

It was your basic run of the mill Inn. It was all one level, an engawa stretched all along the outside, and it had nice landscaping. It looked like the most expensive out of the three they've seen but... there was a pretty girl outside washing the entrance. ' _Of course he'd pick this one. His libido is going to be the end of him I swear!'_ They could only see her from the back but even so, Fuu knew she was pretty. Her kimono seemed to hug her in the right places, and even though her hair was pulled up into a bun it looked silky smooth.

"Hey, I need a room." Placing his arm on the wooden beam above, Mugen closed in on the girl. He flashed her his laviscious grin.

Honestly, Fuu wasn't sure if Mugen was ever able to pick of women. She had never seen it done. Sure, she's seen him shamelessly flirt and press against girls but it never really got him anywhere except for maybe a slap in the face. If this would have been 3 years ago she probably would be trying to interfere and would wind up pouting somewhere. But she knew better now, no matter what he attempted women just seemed thrown off by him. He wasn't as smooth as he thought- actually in those terms he was bumpy. He was a bumpy, uneven dirt road that was more trouble than its worth. And if one day there was a girl that was willing to be with Mugen, Fuu would have to see it to believe it.

"Oh?" Turning around fully to face Mugen, the woman was indeed very pretty. "Of course...Sir?"

Mugen's face looked doomed as he separated himself from the woman. Propped between them was her very pregnant belly. Fuu was almost as surprised as Mugen was, you couldn't even tell she was pregnant from behind. Mugen went stiff as a board not knowing what to do or say.

"Yes, one room please!" Popping out from behind Mugen, Fuu was going to take full advantage of Mugen's mistake before he changed his mind. This Inn was nice, which meant they probably had a bath to match. Leading the way, the pregnant beauty brought them inside. Fuu had to bring in Mugen by grabbing the collar of his shirt. Still looking like he saw a ghost, Mugen paid for one nights stay.

Opening the doors with a loud "clank", Fuu was in heaven. The room was large and the futon looked incredibly soft. There wasn't much else to it, but it was better than their current sleeping arrangements- the outdoors. Sure looking up at the stars was nice but the bumpy cold ground, roots, rocks, and the bugs would not be missed tonight. Her back ached like she was 75 years old, and she had a crank in her neck that needed to be worked out.

"Ehh?! What do you think you're doing?!"

"Hm?" Laying on his side on the futon, Mugen picked at his ear and kicked off his getas. "I'm laying down, what does it look like I'm doing?"

"I mean what are you doing on the futon? You can sleep on the floor."

"The futon is on the floor- idiot." Taking his finger out of his ear he looked at the small ball of wax and blew it away.

"Argh...Whatever! I'll deal with you when I'm done having my bath!" Leaving the room, Fuu "slammed" the door behind her. Stomping she made her way back to the front desk to ask for a spare kimono and directions to the bathing room. "Um..excuse me, I want to have a bath."

The pregnant woman, placed a hand on her back and the other on her stomach as she tried to get herself comfortable on her swollen feet. "Of course, just follow me." Fuu followed the now "waddling" woman, they slowly made their way towards the bathing room. "Say...that man you're with. Is he your husband?"

Stopping. Fuu actually held her gut as she laughed. And she laughed hard- tears started streaming down her face. "No! There's no way!"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean anything by it... It's just I was trying to think of why a nice girl would be travelling with-"

"With someone like him?" Wiping the tears from her face Fuu, the other woman looked uncomfortable- knowing she had asked unnecessary things. "He's just a very good friend. He might look scary, and he may say some pretty mean things but he would be the last person in the world that would hurt me." They started walking again, there seemed to be something hanging in the air, but Fuu was fine. She knew that Mugen and her made an odd duo. "He really is a kind person, if you look deep, deep, deep down that is. After all, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him."

Nodding her head the pregnant woman smiled at Fuu, before sliding some doors open. There was a large basin, it appeared to be made out of some sort of metal. it was held up by a series of wooden supports, and below was a pile of smouldering ashes.

"We empty the water daily, and reheat overnight. Please make sure you rinse yourself first. You'll find a change of clothes in the trunk...we just ask that you return it to the front desk." With a bow, the pregnant woman, turned the sign to show the room was in use and walked away with a smile. _'My my...must be nice to be young.'_

Fuu was more than happy when she stripped herself of the dirty kimono and rinsed herself off with a scoop of warm water. She probably should have rinsed off more but the bath looked devine. Sitting in the tub she could feel almost all of her tensions wash away. The bottom was quite hot but she got used to it. She immediately dipped her head back into the water, soaking her hair. Usually a person would wash their hair before they got in, but she wasn't sure when she would be able to have a bath like this again.

"Ahh, this is so nice!" Stretching her limbs it was time to wash herself. Just using her hand she started to wipe away any dirt that still clung to her. She hummed as she ran her hand up and down both arms. She couldn't help but stop to trace the still healing wound on her shoulder- she would have to cut out and remove the thread that stitched her flesh together soon. Moving her hand down she massaged both of her feet, cleaning between her toes with her lean fingers. It felt nice- but it would feel better of someone else did it for her. How much begging should she have to do to get Mugen to rub her feet? _'Hmph...never in a million years would he do that.'_ Her hand traced up her legs but she froze when she got above her knee. It was like a switch...the feeling of her hand on her skin only reminded her of what she was trying to forget. It was like a black cloud stormed her mind. The marks that were left on her that were kept hidden by her clothes were finally fading but yet they still ached. The marks trailed from her collar bone to above her knees and everywhere in between. Even in the warmth of the bath her body began to tremble. Closing her knees tight together she wrapped her arms around herself and clenched her eyes shut. As much as she tried to forget, and as much as her mind might try to block it out- her body would never be able to rid of this feeling.

Spread out like a star on the futon Mugen stared at the grains of the wooden ceiling. He was bored, utterly and completely bored. He could go and see what the nightlife had to offer. When he was looking for a place to stay he wasn't paying much attention to anything else other than who was going in and out of the Inns. But what kind of second rate brothel would a place like this have? Abruptly sitting up, panic set in; _'What if this place doesn't have a brothel!?'_ He had certain urges that he needed to be taken care of, and taking care of it himself was beginning to grow tiresome. Placing both hands on his face he rubbed them all over and through his hair in a fit of frustration. Well it wasn't exactly the end of the world, there was probably some girls in this place that were waiting for something different. And Mugen was definitely different. With his tattoos, scars and tanned skin he was sure to draw in some attention.

 **Cshlank**

The door slid open and shut. Letting his arms fall lazily down Mugen watched the newly cleaned Fuu, shuffle into the room. The little squirrel that apparently had been lazing somewhere on the futon, jumped up and glided towards her. Clinging to the white kimono it scurried up onto her shoulder.

"Oh..Hi Momo-san." She sounded tired, exhausted. Even her eyes didn't seem like "Fuu", they were downcast and covered with a red circle- she had been crying.

"-And what's wrong with you?" Why did he even ask? Whatever was wrong wasn't his problem, and not like he was going to go out of his way to fix it. He doesn't do crying. He does fighting, and killing. But the girl looked worse than when she first woke up after she got that beating. Damn it...why were girls so emotional. "-Listen girly, I ain't gonna wipe your tears or some dumb shit like that. So if you're gonna cry, do it somewhere else."

"What? I'm not going to cry-" She crossed her arms. "-I'm just tired."

"Bullshit. You got that same look on your face as you did when you saw that little girl with her parents."

 _'What?..he remembers stuff like that?'_ Twisting her wet hair in a bundle she laid it all over one shoulder. "I'm just tired. Why are you still here anyway? Shouldn't you be off getting drunk or something?"

Maybe he should try to find some place to knock a few bottles back. It would be better than watching her on her emotional rollercoaster. "Yea maybe I will." Getting up and walking past her, he barely knocked arms with her. "Don't think for a minute you're sleeping on the futon tonight." Then he slid the door shut, leaving her and Momo alone.

"Hey, what place sells the best sake?" Slamming his fist down on the desk, the pregnant woman was clearly caught off guard. Placing her hand on her racing heart she settled herself.

"Well...actually, we sell sake here. And we have an active kitchen for our guests."

Sitting on the edge of the engawa, a tray full of 3 bottles of sake was set next to him. One leg swung over the edge, his geta barely holding on by his toes. The other leg was propped up, using that knee as a support for his arm. The "city" was dead, he couldn't hear anyone talking or any other commotions. There were only a few lanterns that seemed to illuminate the streets for any late night walkers. Even the other guests were keeping to themselves. The sake numbed his tongue and lips as he finished the first bottle like it was water. It wasn't the best sake he ever had but it wasn't the worse either. But it definitely took the edge off. He wasn't use to travelling with just a girl, last time there was fish face and he seemed to be able to handle the girl and her emotions. None of it made sense to Mugen, why of all times would she be like this? She didn't shed a damn tear the night they left Osaka. Hell she didn't even say anything about it. Maybe that was the problem. The thing with girls that Mugen noticed was that they either didn't know when to shutup or else they kept it to themselves (which he always preferred). If he had a problem, he would either drink or start some fight and he would feel better- but Fuu wasn't like that. The girl had been toughin' it out by herself for the last 3 years. Clicking his tongue, he tipped another bottle up, gulping most of it down.

"Ahh damn that hits the spot!" Wiping his mouth on his arm Mugen started to swing his leg that was over the edge of the engawa. ' _Maybe that's it.'_ Picking up the other full bottle of sake, Mugen made his way back to the room. Before he even opened the doors he could hear her sniffling and sobbing. He hesitated, debating if he should just go back and finish it himself and hope she fell asleep before he got back. Opening the door, he could see her shift from under the blanket on the futon. ' _It's a little late to pretend you're sleeping.'_ Walking over to her he nudged her with his foot.

She didn't want him to see her face, if he was able to tell she was crying before then what would he say now? Since he left she couldn't help the tears that fell from her eyes. She had been rubbing them, wiping away the tears- her eyes were probably swollen already. She used her sleeved to wipe her eyes and nose.

"Hey get up."

No response. She kept her eyes shut but her breathing was still uncontrolled and it "hiccupped" as she tried to calm herself.

"If you don't get up, I'm gonna rape you." He was kidding of course, but unknowing to her this was actually the second time he had made that threat. The first time was when she drank too much sake without knowing what it was, and Jin had to haul her passed out ass on a wagon.

Rubbing her eyes, she propped herself up on one arm- keeping her back to Mugen. She knew he was kidding, or she liked to think he was. He always talked about how repulsive she was. And honestly, she was starting to feel that way about herself too. "What do you want Mugen?"

Holding up the half bottle of sake he circulated his wrist, making the liquid on the inside spin round and round. "Got something for ya." He kept the full bottle for himself.

Looking over her shoulder she knew what it was. Maybe it would help relax her, it seemed drunk people managed to fall asleep no matter the situation. Finally facing him, she took the bottle from him. Her eyes were glossy and red, as two final streams ran down her face. "Thank you."

"You can have the rest of that. But you gotta stop with this crying- got it? It's hard enough dealing with you on a normal day. I ain't got the patience for stuff like this." He plopped himself down on the corner of the futon as he kicked his geta's off. Neither of them said anything. Fuu just quietly sipped at the sake she was given, making her face twist with every bit she drank. And Mugen felt weird- he was happy he didn't have to deal with her crying but a voice deep deep deeeeeep down inside him was telling him to ask what was wrong. It was like an annoying itch beneath his skin. "So you gonna tell me what the hell you're crying about anyway?"

"No." She shook her head vigorously. "If I did I would probably just start crying more." The bottle of sake seemed so big in her small hands as both hands gently tilted it up to her lips. This sip was bigger than the rest, and it must have gone down the wrong tube because she instantly started coughing.

Mugen couldn't help but laugh. Nothing seemed to go right for the girl- she couldn't even take a damn drink without it going wrong for her. She was completely useless. "How in the world did you ever survive without me girly?"

Finally catching her breath she cleared her throat. That was the first drink she's had in about 2 years, and it was the first time in over 3 years that she heard him laugh. It was a nice sound- deep and hearty. No tricks or lies, no underlying motives. He was just laughing. "Well, it wasn't easy at first." She took a sip. "But things were definitely quieter that's for sure. And I could finally go places without people trying to kill me or kidnap me. Before I knew it I found myself doing what I used to do...work, sleep, work some more. It was peaceful with you or Jin constantly dragging me into trouble."

"Yea, well it sure looked like some people were trying to kill you the other day- you did that all on your own." Taking a gulp of his own bottle he watched as her eyes avoided him and she brought the bottle back up. "Hm? Is that what you've been upset about? It's not like that was the first time someone's tried to kill ya."

"No, It's not that. Sure..I was scared but, when I saw you I knew it would be okay. And you did save me-" Rubbing her wrist, Mugen caught eye of the barely visible lines that the ropes left behind. "-I guess old habits die hard huh?" Again, the liquid burned its way down her throat, making her face twist at the sensation.

' _Ah fuck...of course she's upset about that.'_ She had gone through something that even Mugen wouldn't be able to comprehend. He wasn't a girl, he didn't know what it felt like.. sure he had been on the other end of the spectrum but that was all behind him. To be honest- he couldn't even remember their faces. "Oi..girl." His face grew serious again, his hair tickled his eyebrows and he couldn't help but push his chin and lips out as he braced himself for what she may say. But he had a damn good idea on what she would say. "What did that guy do to you?"

She seemed to get tense at the question. Her small shoulders hunched towards her and the grip on the sake bottle tightened.

"..Did he rape-"

"No!" She finally looked at him with desperate eyes. For what seemed like an eternity their eyes locked on one another. He was waiting for her to say something else- and she was wishing he wouldn't. But it was too much. Looking down, he hair fell in front of her face. Her body started to tremble and tears fell down onto her lap. Taking in a deep breath her head suddenly hung back as the sake bottle was once again pressed to her lips. She chugged the last of it, but this time it didn't seem to burn going down.

"Hey." A firm hand gripped her wrist, pulling the bottle down away from her. "How am I supposed to help if you don't tell me huh? I ain't a mind reader."

"I thought you said you didn't care?"

"No- I said I wouldn't wipe your tears. But this isn't just some...dumb reason. I ain't like Jin, and I ain't good with stuff like this. This is the only chance I'm giving ya. Talk now or else keep your emotions to yourself."

Her bottom lip quivered as her lips flipped upside down. Her chin and nose scrunched as the tears finally fell full force. "He didn't do **that**...I thought he would." Her voice was uncontrollably shaky- it was surprising she was able to get any words out. Instead of prying for more information, Mugen just sat there, taking a sip here and there of his drink. She hated thinking about it, she hated that every touch and every word he said to her still lingered like it was still happening. "He kept telling me to scream..t-to yell for help. B-But I didn't!" Suddenly her tear filled eyes were filled with a sense of resolve. "It was like he was trying to break me."

"The sick son of a bitch liked it when they would scream..." All Fuu could do was nod at what Mugen said. That woman at the brothel told him that much. But it was true- when Mugen had approached the shack he didn't hear a thing close to screaming. The girl must have bit her tongue and somehow kept him away. But in truth, Mugen was sure she was lying. The way she was beaten, the way her hands were tied and the fact that the dirty bastard was half dressed when he walked in told more that Fuu did. "So, if he didn't rape ya then what is the problem?"

"He..just..I-I..can still feel his hands..his mouth..all over my body." The empty bottle fell to her side as she hugged herself and clenched her knees tight together again. "-And I hate it. I hate it, I hate it, I hate it!" She really wished her mom was here, or at least Jin. Mugen was trying to be as helpful as he could be but she felt guilty about crying to him. She knew Mugen, she knew he didn't care if she cried, or if she got hurt- he might have always come to her rescue but it got to a point that she felt like it was out of habit and not because he cared. At least if Jin was here he would offer her his arms like he had before- she had no problem crying into the chest of the quiet Samurai. But Mugen was different, she couldn't just throw herself into his embrace and expect him to wait patiently for her tears to stop. Even though she badly wanted some physical compassion, she wasn't as naive to expect Mugen to do it.

"-Listen." He picked up the empty bottle and poured some more from his own into it, handing it back to her. "Nothing you're gonna do is going to make what happened go away. But I can tell you this much. He's dead. That dirty, slimy, son of a bitch is dead. And if I could, I would kill him over and over again for what he did." With only about a quarter of the bottle left, Mugen drank it in one big gulp. "-But that ain't gonna happen, and as long as I'm around, something like that ain't gonna happen to you again." Hell, he wasn't a bodyguard by any means, he's done much worse to people. Much much worse...and to more people than what she could imagine. All the incidences, the faces, they all seemed to blur in his mind. At first he was able to keep count, but then the day came where he no longer bothered with it. Where was he at now; 50? 100? 150? He never thought of the consequences, or the aftermath of what he did. This was the first time he saw it from the other side, he saw it from the victim, and of course it just had to be her. It had to be Fuu. "You got that? 'Cause I'm not saying it again."

She almost couldn't believe it. _"-as long as I'm around, something like that ain't gonna happen to you again."_ . Did Mugen really say something like that or was the sake hitting her? Grasping the material that lay over her heart, it began to hurt. Like it was tightening inside...maybe heart burn? Taking a sip of the sake, it felt cool in contrast to her lips. In fact, her entire face was hot. _'The sake is definitely hitting me.'_

Mugen seemed surprised and impressed by the fact that saying so little got her water works to stop. Girls were easy to set off and just as easy to calm down apparently. It wasn't as hard as he thought it was. Jin always looked pissed off after he would be done dealing with Fuu. "Got it?"

She snapped back to reality.

"Yea but you're only around until you get your dumplings. I distinctly remember you saying you don't have any other reason to stay." She couldn't help but pout her lips- it was a habit she had ever since childhood. She would often do this when she was travelling with Jin and Mugen. But she had since tried to stop doing it- she was trying to be a mature woman. Most girls her age were already married or had children, not that she intended to do either of those things in the near future but even she knew she had to make some changes.

"Stop worrying about shit like that...just shutup and drink your sake so I can go to sleep." Scratching an itch on his stomach he lifted his shirt a bit. He let out a big loud yawn, he made no attempt at covering his mouth either.

"Fine I will, but not because you told me too!" Tipping the bottle she finished the one gulp. She clenched her eyes as she did so- not seeing the eyes that roamed her.

For some reason, over the last two weeks Mugen kept finding himself glancing at her. At first it was because he couldn't believe that somehow he got dragged into her drama again, and then he kept looking to make sure she was really there. There were times that he felt like he was seeing things, and maybe she was one of them. But yet she was there every time he opened his eyes and every time he glanced over. It wasn't just his mind playing tricks on him. And maybe it was just the sake talking but the white kimono she wore was tighter than her other one- and it definitely didn't go unnoticed. She wasn't the same bratty 15 year old girl, she had grown up quite a bit. Sure she was still bratty, loud, and annoying but at least she was easy on the eyes. Rubbing his eyes he let himself fall on the half of the futon he was sitting on. "Pshhh...yea right..."

"Yea right what? Wait..what are you doing Mugen!?" Why was he laying down, couldn't he see that she was clearly there first? It wasn't a big futon, slightly larger than the typical one she would sleep on but still. She knew how Mugen tended to sleep, his arms and legs would go in every direction. Even while sleeping he was reckless. It was a wonder that he never woke himself up in the middle of the night with all the flailing he did.

"I'm goin' to sleep." Laying on his side he was facing her, he laid one arm under his head- his fingers tickled the back of his neck. He always talked sloppy when he was tired or drunk. And she wasn't exactly sure which one or if he was both right now.

"Are you seriously going to make me sleep on the floor?!" She reached and shook his shoulder.

"I ain't making you do nothing." Keeping his eyes closed he swatted her hand away from him. "Just shut the hell up and go to sleep."

Fuu looked at him dumbfounded, and rather uncomfortable. Did he mean for her to sleep next to him? Or was this his way of saying _get the hell off of my bed_? Fidgeting she couldn't seem to decide on what to do. She went from looking at every available spot on the bare floor, to trying to calculate exactly how much space would separate her from the beast that was Mugen. Why was she so nervous? It's not like sleeping in the same room as him was something new to her. But the fact that it was on the same futon just made it seem like a completely different experience. She got up off of the futon and blew out the lantern that illuminated the space. When she finally laid down, Mugen couldn't help but open his eyes.

 _'For fuck sakes...'_ He couldn't believe that she actually crawled back onto the futon. The girl just finished crying about how some guy groped her and yet she was still willingly laying next to him. She had no sense of danger with him, or with anyone it seemed- did she really have no idea what he was capable of? Sure, he constantly told her how ugly she was and how she had zero sex appeal but damn it, the girl had changed over the last 3 years. And he was still a man- she wasn't exactly the worse looking girl he'd ever seen. He had done a hell of a lot more than just groping a girl- willing or not. You'd think after what happened to her she would have her guard up more.

"Hey Mugen.."

"What? Damn it, I'm trying to sleep." He rolled his eyes at himself, he was actually just laying there with his eyes open like some creep. But then she rolled over, still keeping her distance and her eyes met his. His facial expressions never fazed her. He either had a stupid grin on his face when he got some idiotic idea in his head or else he had his scowl. More often than not it was the scowl.

"Thank you for tonight."

"Jeez, what are you saying?" He rolled onto his back and then onto his other side. "You're an idiot."

"And you're a jerk."

She watched his back as his breathing slowed into a rhythm. He always fell asleep fast, but she knew better than to believe he was asleep already. Unfortunately for her ears, Mugen would always snore like a bear when he fell asleep. But nonetheless she watched as his shoulder raised and lowered with every inhale and exhale. Even though she had grown Mugen still seemed as big as she remembered. Despite his baggy clothing she knew what he wasn't as lanky as he looked. He had broad shoulders that topped of the physique of a natural born fighter. Maybe that was part of Mugen's bit, make everyone think he is some bean pole with a sword whereas in reality he was well built. _'Too bad your personality stinks..'_ Her eyes slowly started to flutter when the comfort of the futon engulfed her and the rhythm of Mugen's shoulder's got her in a trance, just like counting sheep. Her eyes opened and closed until she lost the battle and allowed sleep to take over.

Laying with his eyes still open, he listened to Fuu's breathing. There was a slight whistle could be heard every time she exhaled, and damn it was pissing him off. Getting up, Mugen needed some fresh air and to get away from that damn high pitch whistle. Leaving the Inn he wound up walking around the "city" again. Every shop and building was dark- it seemed everyone but him was sleeping. But, he was still mad, and what for even? Because the girl was whistling in her sleep? No it was more than that, everything about this whole night was pissing him off. The shitty city, shitty food, shitty sake and the way Fuu was crying. But why the hell should he care if she was crying? It never bothered him before, so why should it now? But it wasn't just her crying, it was why she was crying. Maybe if he had got there sooner he could have done something, maybe he could have stopped it. He could have prevented him from going one inch higher on her leg, or one centimeter lower on her chest. "DAMN IT!" He couldn't help but kick over an empty barrel in his fit of frustration. He clenched his fists so tightly that he began to shake, he was beyond pissed off- he was furious. Why did it make him so mad to finally hear her say it, he knew that the son of a bitch had touched her. He had actually assumed that the bastard raped her but instead he toyed with her. He tried to break her to get off on his sick perversion, he made her suffer more than she would have if he would have just done it and got it over with. Winding his fist back he unleashed a hellish sound as he hit a post time and time again. Each hit was harder than the last until he stopped. His now bloodied knuckles pressed firmly against the beam, he leaned into it until his head lightly knocked on the wood. "What the hell am I doing?.."

Without bothering to bandage or wash his own hands, Mugen made his way back into the hotel room. Fuu still seemed to me asleep but she had shifted on the futon, she now lay dead center. He took off his getas and he meant what he said earlier- he was going to sleep on that futon. He watched her for a moment, her face was tense and she seemed uncomfortable-she was dreaming. "Hey, move your fat ass over." He nudged her with his foot again. Nothing. "Hey, I said move over... Girl, listen to me-" Grabbing her by the shoulder he shook her, and what a mistake that was.

"NO!" She went into full panic instantly shouting. She started hitting Mugen anywhere that her arms could reach: his arms, chest, and even his face.

"HEY! YO, IT'S JUST ME!" He grabbed her by her other shoulder shaking her but she didn't stop. She only seemed to panic more, landing a shot to his jaw. Finally he pushed her down onto her back, getting on top of her. "It's me Mugen!"

"GET OFF ME! MUGEN! HELP-"

"IT IS ME!"

Her breathing was unsteady and rapid, like a lost child. Her eyes darted all over him, like she didn't believe what she saw. "M-Mugen? But-" The tears were already welled up in her eyes and pouring down the sides of her head. Covering her mouth with her small shaking hand she whispered; "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean-" Her face winced as if she were in pain. "Ow, Mugen, you're hurting me."

He found himself in a pit of rage like earlier, but he was taking it out on her slender shoulders. He eased his grip before finally getting off of her. He couldn't help but grumble to himself as he rubbed his face with one hand. He knew she didn't mean to hit him, he woke her up in a middle of a dream, or rather a nightmare. Even if she visually seemed okay, the scars that had been left in her mind would be harder to overcome. But her calling his name like that really bothered him. Was that what she was thinking the entire time that guy's hand traced over her body? Was she silently calling for help, for his help?

"Move over. I'm tired."

She listened to him and she moved back to where she was before he left for his walk. He laid down on his back closing his eyes instantly. He listened to her shift a few times before she got comfortable again. He lifted one arm to hook over his eyes, he left enough of a gap so that if he opened his eyes he was still able to glance at her.

No matter how hard she tried she just couldn't fall asleep again, she couldn't seem to catch her breath between soft sobs. Her stomach was in knots and she couldn't help but feel empty, not only that but her eyes burned from the amount of crying she had done earlier. Barely opening her eyes she watched as Mugen covered his eyes with his arm. She badly wanted to reach over and pull on the red material that covered his upper body. She wanted to be engulfed in it until her eyes couldn't cry anymore, and she wanted to sob until her voice gave out. Before her mind had time to register what her body was doing, she already had his red sleeve bundled in her hand. The material was so worn down that she could feel the heat of her fingers on the palm of her hand. But most of all, she could feel the heat radiating from Mugen. She had honestly expected him to pull himself away, to tell her to let go and let him sleep. But he didn't say anything- he didn't move. Gently rolling the material between her thumb and index finger, she could have swore that it was the softest material she ever felt. With red in her grasp, her tears ceased, and she trailed off into an uninterrupted dreamless sleep.


	6. Chapter 5 - Necessary Evil

**I've had quite the time trying to write this chapter. For some reason as soon as I submitted my last one, my friends and family suddenly decided my house was the place to be. So literally for 6 days I wasn't able to write a single word for this chapter. I'm starting to get into the kind of events that you would see in the show, no rhyme or reason, things happen because they happen and they just happen to be entertaining. I think I'll be taking about 1 1/2 - 2 weeks per each chapter now. They're usually done in a few days but I find myself taking more and more time with editing (and honestly, I should leave it alone for two days before I go to edit to let myself get a fresh sense of mind). I'm also going back and renaming most of the chapters.  
**

 **I received a few reviews and some more follower (thank you all so much!) since my last update and there's one in particular I want to mention. It wasn't a bad review, but they brought to light something that I had done with a character that I never thought much of because it seemed like the natural/obvious thing to do.**

Review: tinylittlerobots

love seeing the mundane, routinely life of Fuu, because it feels so accurate. I like how mature you wrote her to be, and it's fantastic seeing her grown

 **Fuu is your simple, basic girl just trying to make a living, she is indeed living a mundane life. At least she was until she got involved with Mugen again. By the way, I checked out your profile and you seem like a really interesting person- a profile since 2006! That takes some good hard dedication, and I'm sure one day I'll come back and read this story and I'll cringe at it too!**

 **As time passes or as chapters get posted some of you may feel something is different about Fuu and Mugen- and yes, that is because I am purposely portraying them differently than in the show. I am a different person than what I was 3 years ago, and they are as well. I am keeping a lot of characteristics similar but I don't want Fuu to be as bubbly as she was when she was 15. And I also intend to make Mugen more aware of his surroundings, not just to who poses a threat but I want him to start being aware of his own actions and the consequences that could potentially follow.  
Some of these situations and conversations I write will probably feel off, you might even think "Hey..they would never say/do this.." but that is what happens with character development and with personal development. So as much as I love the characters as they are in the show, we need to keep in mind that this isn't based on the same timeline as what we saw on the TV (or computer screen). Cheers to growing up!**

 **Chapter 5 - Necessary Evil**

* * *

She woke up with a smack- literally. Her eyes shot open but her view was blocked with the back of Mugen's hand and wrist. His ferocious snoring was still in full roar, meaning he was still very much asleep. The sun was already beaming in through the paper lined windows- which meant one of two things. It was either really early or they had slept in. It was hard to tell this time of year because the sun tended to rise early. She felt like she could sleep all day and all night again. All that walking left Fuu's body sore and worn out, not to mention the mental toll this had on her. It would take more than just one comfortable night's sleep to recoop. Plus, this was the first time in two weeks that she actually got to sleep in a futon, and Mugen ruined it. His dirty, boney wrists and large stinkin' hand ruined it. Before she had time to think of the consequences or of when the last time he washed his hands, she opened wide and bit down with a crunch on the soft side of his hand below his pinky.

"Ow what the fuck!?" Suddenly jerking his hand away, Mugen sat up, causing his long legs to flail before settling himself.

"That's what you get for waking me up, jerk!" She smacked her tongue around, Mugen tasted awful. It was like taking a drink of dirty water- it left an unwelcomed flavour. A firm hand gripped the collar of her kimono, pulling her close as Mugen knit his eyebrows and pursed his lips much like a yankee.

"Bitch, don't think for a minute I'll take it easy on you. If you bite, this dog will maul you." He watched her wide eyed expression twist into something else.

Waving her hand between their close faces she plugged her nose with her other. "Ew Mugen, your breath is disgusting!"

"Eh?.." Damn he made her mad, she could at least pretend she was scared. He wasn't kidding- just because it was her doesn't mean she was going to get away with everything. Getting him pissed off is one thing but for her to actually inflict physical pain was something completely different. She'd always gotten away with everything, mostly because Jin would tell him to let it go. Half the stupid shit she said and did wasn't worth the effort it took to argue but somehow he always found himself in the middle of a bout with her. Letting her go he pushed her back a bit causing her to brace herself on the palms of her hands. Standing up, Mugen cracked his back. "That's 250 now."

"250 what?"

"250 dumplings, you idiot."

"What?! You can't just add more for no reason!" Puffing her cheeks she rose up onto her knees with her little hands balled into fists.

"Call it a: "Pain in my ass fee". Keep pissing me off and I'll keep adding more."

"Argh, Mugen! You're a royal pain in my ass too you know!" Grabbing the pillow she threw it at him, somehow getting the master fighter in the face. "Jeez, if you want to get rid of me you shouldn't be adding more to the total, stupid- Oof!" Her face was met with the same pillow she just tossed at him.

"Ya, whatever." With his getas back on and his sword on his back, Mugen scratched his butt from under his shorts and left the room. He had done lots of biting but it never happened to him. The girl didn't even bite hard enough to leave any teeth marks but the placement still made it hurt. _'Annoying bitch..who the hell does she think she is? Biting me like that. She's a damn animal.'_ Actually, she was worse than an animal. At least animals would know when to fuck off. They seemed to have a natural detection to danger, unlike her. You wouldn't see a damn rabbit go after a wolf, but yet there she was.

Walking past the front desk, Mugen stood by the Inn's entrance. He watched the still slow and lack luster streets- the place was still a ghost town despite the time of day. The shops and buildings that had their lights extinguished last night still showed no signs of life. Their doors still closed shut and cloths draped over the windows. Why didn't he notice this earlier? It all seemed...off. Sure this place wasn't the biggest city either, but it was far off from being a village.

 _"-if you want to get rid of me you shouldn't be adding more to the total, stupid-"_

He clicked his tongue. "Hmph, so stupid..."

* * *

"You're the one that's stupid, stupid."

She watched Mugen leave the room, and thank goodness. Maybe now she could get some more sleep- but she doubted it. Her mind was already wide awake and she could feel her stomach begin to tighten as hunger took over. One bad thing about finally eating is that the stomach starts to expect more. But when you tend to eat only a little bit every day the body gets use to it and is able to survive off of it. She spoiled her stomach and now it was getting greedy. Rolling around like a log on the futon she went back and forth, rolling herself in the blanket like a sausage casing.

"Oi, Momo-san..I made a fool out of myself last night didn't I?" The little critter crawled out of Fuu's folded kimono and launched itself onto her head, making a sequence of squeeks as if it was really talking to her. She really had made a fool out of herself, but she had been keeping it in for so long she was bound to let it all out eventually. The fact Mugen happened to walk in on her crying wasn't part of the plan but there was nothing she could do about it now. What was done is done and what was said couldn't be taken back. "-That's right..." Jumping up she tossed the blanket off of her and did what she considered was a power stance. Her one knee bent down behind her and her other leg bent and extended in front (like a lunge) and her arms flexed. "-There's no need to be depressed Fuu!" Standing up straight she smacked her face hard with both hands, leaving red prints on both cheeks. "Let's go Momo-san!"

Putting on her dusty pink kimono, Fuu ran out of the room not quite sure where she would find Mugen. One way or another they would find each other before it was time to head out. There didn't seem to be anyone else in the Inn, if there were they must have already left. Her feet led her to a hall way, adjacent to the front desk and entrance. At the end of the hallway, the door at the back was wide open, revealing lush green grass and a hill behind the Inn. Not sure if she was allowed to be back there Fuu continued to follow until the sun's rays beamed down on her face. From the corner of her eye she saw the pregnant hostess, carrying a large basket with white linens piled up and hanging off of the sides. Almost tripping on her own two feet, the hostess stumbled, dropping the basket and all of its contents.

Rushing to her side, Fuu placed a hand on the woman's back and extended arm, stopping her from bending down. "Here, let me." Correcting her posture the woman sighed with relief as Fuu picked up the scattered linens and placed them back into the basket. "Why are you doing all yourself?" Standing up, the basket was heavier than it looked. "You're pregnant, shouldn't your husband be helping you?"

"Ah..well.." Looking downcast the woman rubbed her stomach. "He's away working."

"Oh? How long has he been gone for? If it were me, I'd give my husband a piece of my mind for leaving me by myself while pregnant." Adjusting her grip on the heavy basket Fuu saw the rows of ropes hangining over them. "Want these up here?"

Chuckling, the woman nodded. "He left before I knew I was pregnant. He's been gone for almost 7 months now. But it will be a nice surprise when he finally gets back- him and the other's."

"Oh wow...that's a long time." Hanging the linens on the lines, Fuu made sure they were even on both sides. But it was strange that they were hanging up already dried, usually you wouldn't hit dust off ones this thin. Maybe they were just being put up to get aired out? "What do you mean, by the other's?"

"Well, things have been so slow here, a new road was made and now people don't seem to come here as often. Tourism and trading has slowed down over the last few years... so an opportunity came and so my husband and most of the other men left..."

"So, you've been alone this entire time?" The thought was something all too familiar to Fuu. Although the baby was not born yet, Fuu saw the toll being alone had on her own mother. Although, her father left for different reasons, and they had no hope of him ever coming back. At least the hostess had hope left on her side, even if her husband had been gone for almost a year, the possibility for a full happy family was still realistic for her. "You're really brave, you know that?"

"Eh? My, this is nothing. If you ask me, this is one of the least brave things a woman can do... Not to say that it's easy but...I've always dreamed of being a mother, and having a husband with me or not won't change the fact that I will have a child. And being in a place like this makes it easy. My parents were both born here..as was I. This city, and this Inn have been with me my entire life. So I can't help but feel I'm taking the easiest path possible." Bending down, she helped Fuu hang the many linens.

The ropes that strung from the back of the Inn to some posts were barely within arms reach, but this made it so the cloths did not drag on the ground. The ropes were already frayed, stretching loose "hairs" that poked through some of the draped materials. Somehow all the materials were still stark white, not even so much of a blemish or a speck could be seen. The late morning breeze made an appearance, making the linens effortlessly dance. Fuu's hair blew over her shoulders and strands swayed infront of her eyes- some smaller strands catching in her eyelashes.

Wearing her hair down wasn't as practical as always keeping it up like she used to but in her process of trying to become more than just herself she abandoned the messy up-do around the same time she had to say goodbye to her old kimono. If need be she would sometimes tie it back with whatever she could find; a ribbon, a thin piece of cloth, and sometimes chopsticks. Even though she loved the way her hair felt when it could dance in the breeze like this, it never gave her the same sensation that her up-do would. The way the ends of her twisted hair would often tickle the back of her neck, sending shivers down her body-or the way it bounced when she walked. Sometimes she would add in a little extra "hop" to her step just to feel her hair follow her up and then back down. Even Fuu's mother would style her hair up when she was young, so it was out of habit that she kept it up.

"Neesan, let me help you here." Stepping out from around the linen, Fuu was able to make eyecontact with the slightly older woman. "I-I mean if you don't mind the help, maybe..Mugen and I could stay here for awhile until we figure out what to do." Nervously Fuu laughed and tucked her hair behind her ear. "I mean the guy is hopeless really, he doesn't think before he acts. He'll probably just wants to keep on walking from place to place without a plan. AND! I can't let a pregnant lady like yourself do all this work." Finally taking a breath, Fuu felt a bit embarrassed. Maybe she just put the woman in an awkward position, after all Fuu just declared she wanted to stay for another night in exchange for her help- and that the man she was with was nothing short of an idiot.

At first the woman didn't know what to say, but she couldn't help but take a moment to process what was said to her. She blinked, just staring at Fuu until she let out a slight laugh and smiled. "You're really interesting Fuu-chan...I actually think you're the brave one here." In a half attempt at bending down, she managed to pick up another linen, handing it to Fuu. "The help would be nice, but I can't offer you much for pay. But..I can let you and your..companion, stay for another night."

"Huh? How am I brave?" Finding the corners of the linen Fuu fluffed it out into the air before doing it again- draping it on the rope. "I'm just helping you is all Neesan."

Grabbing onto the newly draped cloth, she helped Fuu even it out over the rope. "I mean, travelling. I can only imagine the places, the people you've seen. And your companion...he's certainly different."

"Ah Mugen? He's his own kind of special that's for sure. But I've been going out on my own for about four years.. well, I guess not really on my own but I've travelled across Japan once before when I was 15- with Mugen and..someone else." More often than not, her mind would drift to Mugen for some unknown stupid reason. But the few times it lost itself to the thoughts of Jin she always felt unchanged. The samurai was always comforting her, even if he didn't say much but she never lost sleep while thinking about him. Maybe it was because he was so calm and collected that she knew he was safe- or that she had nothing to worry about. Scrunching her face Fuu shook her head. _'Stop thinking like this Fuu! Get over it already, Sheesh!'_

"It sounds like you've already lived quite the life, Fuu-chan. You've seen more than I could ever dream of.."

"You know...your only limit is yourself. I mean... I could have just stayed and worked in another teahouse 3 years ago...but I didn't. I took a chance on a guy that looked like an escaped criminal and a samurai who both wanted to kill eachother-"

"Yea but no one is as stupid as you."

Almost jumping, Fuu looked next to her and there was Mugen. Despite how clumsy and crude he was he could sure sneak up on a person.

"You might say that but you and Jin still stayed. So obviously I'm not that stupid, stupid!" Sticking her tongue out she had to snap it back in quickly. Like Mugen knew she was going to do that he almost caught the tip of her tongue between his thumb and index finger.

"What the hell are you doing anyway? Let's get goin'."

"Well actually, Neesan is going to let us stay here for another night if I help out today. Maybe you should roll up your sleeves and help, Hmmmm?" Raising an eyebrow, she leaned towards him while stretching out the last part of her sentence.

His large hand fit over Fuu's face as he pushed her back. "I ain't doin' women's work." He gripped on over her face so she couldn't get away. He wore a stupid cheshire like grin on his face as he watched her struggle, trying to get his hand off his face. Her protests again were nothing but muffles under his palm. Her breath warmed the spots on his skin which made it even more uncomfortable for her. "If you want me to let you you just have to say so, you freak." His words were more of a chuckle, he was like a cat playing with a cornered mouse. He knew very well what she was saying, but god damn...it was too much fun. "I can't hear ya, what was that?"

"Umm..Ex..excuse me. But...if you're interested I do have...other jobs?" Feeling like a third wheel at her own place, the woman braced her lower back.

Mugen's head shot in her direction, not noticing her before. His hand still gripped firmly over Fuu's face as she still tried to pry it from her. "Like what?"

With a satisfying **thunk** , the two pieces of wood flew off of the large stump he was using as a block. The almost symmetrical chunks fell onto the pile of pieces matching in size that lay on the ground. Axe in hand, Mugen set another large chunk ontop of the block and with one fluid swing he repeated the process. The axe worried him a bit at first, it wasn't bought from a store by any means. It was hand made, poorly made but it seemed to get the job done. The handle wasn't smooth or sanded down, it looked like a scrap piece of wood from something else- maybe a hoe or a shovel. The blade seemed smith made, the end flarring out like a fan and then growing smaller with notches where it would be fitted to a handle. But instead of smelting or nails for security it was held together with a series of tethers. But with a few swings before hand it seemed to stay in place, and when the first piece of wood was split successfully he was convinced.

 **Thunk**

 **Thunk**

He didn't know why but chopping wood never bothered him. It was better than exercising, which he loathed. Although it wasn't as exciting as fighting, or cutting down some jerk who thought they were stronger- but it was definitely cleaner. There was no mess after, no splurting blood, no chance at failure and no consequences. It was just him, the axe and the chunk of wood.

Eventually he had to set down the axe and he tossed the small chunks into a pile under the valance. He didn't bother stacking them nicely, they were just going to get burned to ashes anyway. Whether they were stacked nicely or in a pile they would burn all the same, and stacking them would only take up more time. He had no intentions on staying longer than he had too, not that he was forced to stay but he couldn't argue with a free place to crash. The room wasn't bad and it kept the girl from whining relentlessly. He didn't even mind chopping wood, it kept his arm from getting stiff. Wiping some sweat from his brow he looked at the mess that was the chopped wood. How much more did he have to do? He already did quite a bit, at least enough that the pregnant broad wouldn't have to chop any for awhile.

"Damn..it's getting hot." Shoving off his haori, he fanned the top of his shirt a few times trying to circulate the air.

Placing her fingers on the edge of the door frame, Fuu pushed her body forwards and stretched her arms out behind her. "Muuugen, Neesan says its time for a break. She made lunch!" Fuu couldn't help but smile the biggest smile she could munster, she was trying not to drool just thinking about the food. The surprise lunch was the cherry on top of what seemed to be a good day. Doing chores and working always made Fuu feel good, like she had accomplished something worth her time. Walking around might have its own benefits but every time they stopped for a break or every night she looked up at the stars she couldn't help but feel like she had no meaning. That she made no impact on the world or had nothing to show for her days "effort". Today she already did more than what she had in the last two weeks; laundry, cleaning floors, weeding the front. Her kimono sleeves were tied back much like they had when she was a regular at work, and her hair was twisted up. The ends of her hair tickled her neck, giving her the sensation that she reminisced about earlier.

She was so...earnest.

Suddenly everything felt hotter to him. Continuing to fan the collar of his shirt, it didn't feel like enough. His cheeks, ears, everything- it was hot. Unintentionally he found himself watching the hair that tickled her neck and how it bounced as she moved. Her skin seemed too smooth to be real, and her cheeks had a healthy pink glow to them. It was a much lighter colour than that of her kimono. Pink..everything about her was pink. So honest and innocent...just like her.

"What? Is there something weird?" Feeling conscious she ran her hand over the sides of her face, feeling for what could possibly be there. He was staring at her again. It was never for long but ever now and then she would catch him looking at her. It was like her was always judging her, or some how trying to figure something out. It wasn't the same way he looked at other women when he was checking them out.

"Yea there is. But I'm use to your ugly mug already."

Her face instantly went red, discarding the pink hue it just had. "Like your one to talk! Jerk."

* * *

Food seemed to fly everywhere as Mugen didn't seem to hold back. Lunch was only rice and boiled cabbage but damn it was good. Fuu held back in her own kind of way, by trying to sit proper and eating slowly with reserve- but her food still towered high above the brim of the bowl. They sat on the floor around a rather large table- it was definitely meant for a larger group of people. Fuu and Mugen didn't seemed to mind the lack luster meal or the dining space.

"So...Neesan, I meant to ask before but we were rudely interrupted-" She glanced at Mugen just to watch his mouth smack open, taking in another large amount of cabage despite his mouth still being full of half chewed food. "-you said most people left to work? Where did they all go?"

"I'm not too sure actually." She pursed her lips, trying to remember. "I know the recruiters said it once...but that was so long ago I just can't remember. But I have faith that my husband will come back."

"-Sounds like you all got dooped." With a clang, Mugen set down his empty bowl- rice stuck to his chin and upper lip but he didn't seem to notice. "I mean, what the hell kind of operation is that? And you all just went along with it?"

"Mugen, you can't just say stuff like that!"

"Why the hell not? It's not my fault that everyone here is stupid. You'll never see a coin from those people, and your husband is either dead or he's never coming back."

"MUGEN!"

Gently setting down her bowl, the pregnant woman seemed unfazed by Mugen's words. "I know." She said solemly, her eyes not parting from Mugen's. "I know, but I can't admit it to the other's. If I fail, or this Inn fails, then this town does too. That is why I have to have faith, because if I don't then the reason behind them leaving will be forgotten and all we will be left with is..nothing."

Somehow..the conversation made Fuu lose her appetite, something that never happened to her before. If she never ate it was because there was no food to be eaten. But yet in front of her was her bowl full of rice and a dish full of salted cabbage and she had no desire for any of it.

"You gonna finish that?" Before giving her a chance to answer, Mugen already had Fuu's food in his hands and shoved into his face.

Shifting the way she was sitting, she inched her way closer to the hostess. Fuu's eyes determined and steady, she looked into the hurt and yet prideful eyes of the other woman. Fuu knew it wasn't any of her business but Mugen kicked in the door and over stepped the personal boundaries already. It's not like her words could make anything worse, maybe somehow she could give the woman in front of her something to think about. "About your husband...and everyone else that left...what are you going to do about it?"

"What do you mean? I-I-"

"-Not a damn thing she can do." Lazing back, Mugen's belly popped out from under his shirt and he unleashed a satisfied belch. "-nothing anyone can do."

In an instant, Fuu flung herself over the corner of the table- latching her index finger and thumb onto Mugen's ear. Pulling him from his comfortable lounge she only pulled harder as she stood up and made her way out of the dining room- forcing Mugen to come with her. Her feet stomped hard on the wooden floor until they were far enough back that she hoped they wouldn't be heard. "You're a real jerk you know that?! You can't just go saying whatever you want to people!" Finally letting go of his ear the ill-tempered Fuu turned to him and placed her hands on her hips. She was fuming, if she somehow got any more mad steam would be shooting from her ears. This is what her mother must have felt like whenever she would scold her. In the last year of her mother's life for some reason Fuu did everything in her power to disobey her, which often lead to situations like this. Her mother's hands on her hips, about to give a mouthful.

"What. The. Hell. Bitch." Stepping ever so slightly closer and closer to Fuu, Mugen rubbed his ear. She did it again, twice in one day- she actually inflicted pain. The damn girl pinched harder than she bit or punched. His ear was throbbing from the force she placed on it, the hole that the jade earring pierced felt like it was burning. "I thought I told you that if you bite-" Her hands fell from her hips as she took a few steps back away from Mugen, but by turning himself slightly he placed one arm on either side of her. Palms flush against the wall, he stared down at her. "-this dog will maul you."

She didn't know what to think or do. The only thing she could do was take it all in, her large brown eyes explored everything in front and around her. The long, tan muscular arms kept her where she was with her back lightly brushing against the wall. She noticed a few larger scars that she saw before, they were above his elbows were his haori usually covered. Each scar had its own direction and pattern, some healed into smooth lines and other's looked jagged and rough around the edges. Eyes following the lines of his arms she finally realized what was so different about the shirt he wore. Rather than the white one with X's on the front, this one, although still white, had visible stitching around the V neckline, the sleeves and bottom hem. It was like the stitching was dotted lines, making the eye follow it like a map. Hearing him chortle, her eyes snapped up to his face. He caught her staring at him.

"Ya know what that means don't chya..?" Bending slightly at the elbows Mugen brought himself close to her ear. She could feel his breath against her skin, igniting it.

"Huh? What, no, I-"

"300 dumplings" Removing his arms he twacked her on the forehead. "You look like a damn pervert. What the hell were you thinking hmm?" His grin grew wide and he puffed his chest out, barely holding in his laugh. He saw the way she looked at him, the girl thought he was putting his moves on her and she did nothing to stop him. _'Pew...yea right, you're still a few years and a few breast sizes away from me even considering that.'_

 ** _"_** HA! Yea right, I was just thinking about how that cabbage made your breath smell worse." Plugging her nose she turned away from him. She wasn't a pervert, she was simply looking at him- he was the one that put her in that position in the first place. If either of them were a pervert it was him, not her- no way no how."Why? What did you think I was thinking?" Hand back on her hip, she placed her chin on the soft spot between her thumb and index finger- like a check mark.

"Kiss my ass."

"You'd like that wouldn't you, you pervert."

When the hell did she get so snappy, and since when did she get the last word? _'God damn it!'_ He was ready to rip out his own hair and strangle her with it, he was raging on the inside (to say the least). It wouldn't take much to get her to shutup, or to make her realize her place. It would be as easy as a few words and raising his hand- but he knew better. He couldn't do something like that to her for some god damn stupid fucking reason. Sure he could insult her to his hearts desire, laugh at how stupid she was but now she seemed to be laughing at him instead.

"Ya know one day you'll regret running that mouth of yours"

"Yea, yea, whatever." Walking back towards the dining room, Fuu waved her had in dismissal. "You should make sure to brush yours before you start running it."

"You little- I swear I'll beat you!"

Getting back to the dining room, the hostess was gone, but the dirty plates and bowls still remained. "Neesan?"

"Please, you can't do that! It'll ruin this Inn- this town!"

"Hm? Neesan?" Raising her voice a little louder, Fuu followed where the voice seemed to be coming from. Going to the other end of the hallway Fuu found herself at the front entrance of the Inn. Just past the nice and tidy landscaping was the hostess down on her knees in front of a group of men on their horses. Fuu couldn't see her face but she knew the pregnant Neesan was in tears. There were at least a dozen men on their horses, each one looked about as average as the last. The man in particular that she seemed to be speaking to had a large round belly and his hair was almost gone except for a pathetic excuse for a bun tied on the back of his head. He had no defined neck as it was over taken by and extra chin that made him resemble a toad, the top lining of his haori wasn't visible because of the large pocket of fat. Fuu couldn't help but feel bad for the horse he was on.

"Unless you can provide someone to take his place we will have no choice but to take your possessions to settle his debt."

"But he had no debt! I-I don't understand! He left to work with you- most of the town left to work."

"Then I suggest you steer clear of your Inn until we're done."

All of the men except for the apparent leader dismounted from their horses. Some horses stomped back and forth, unhappy with their current situation. Men pulled on the reigns, trying to get the horses to submit, after a few more stomps of their hooves they collectively calmed down. Balling her hands into fists, Fuu stepped to go defend her hostess but a firm grip on her shoulder tossed her back and once again a broad sword wielding back took her place. Getas stopped next to the kneeling woman as eyes roamed over the horses and men.

"Thanks for the grub."

She looked up at him in disbelief. Did he not see what was happening here, or did he just not care?

"And you are you supposed to be? Can't you see we're busy here?"

The fat slob blabbed on, but all Mugen could pay attention to was how his overly large second chin moved and squished with every word. Feeling his stomach, Mugen could already feel the bubbles forming because of the cabbage. If Fuu was complaining about his breath he could only imagine what she would say later on. Cabbage never did agree with him that well, maybe he would have been better off with just the rice but he needed something more since people around here seemed to be skimping on meat. That's it, tonight he was eating meat- he didn't care if it was raw or charred or even if it was horse meat. He was going to tear into some tonight- just thinking about it made him start to drool.

"-do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Huh? Not damn word." Scratching his ear, Mugen let a small burp escape him, making his lips smack. His bubbling stomach seemed to feel better, Fuu could count her blessings for now it wasn't coming out of the other end.

"P-Please just ignore him. He's just a traveller staying at the Inn."

"Boy, if you know what's good for you, you'll just keep on travelling."

"Ooh?" Keeping his hand up by his ear, Mugen took another look at the men. From his point of view only a few of them had swords, meaning they were all bark and no bite. Fatso was just some crooked business man and these were his chumps to do his bidding. He could probably just threaten them, wave around his sword a little bit, scare them away...or he could have some fun out of it. It had been awhile since he last clashed swords with another, and man after all that action in Osaka he was starting to crave it. Attentively, he started watching the hands of those in front of him- who would make the first move? Steadily, Mugen's hand drew closer and closer to his blade. "Ya know...I've never been one for _'good_ '."

As fast as a hummingbird flapping its wings, Mugen drew out his sword and had the end placed on the throat of a man. The dumb bastard thought he could get the better of Mugen, but man, he was wrong. In his shaking hand was a pistol, barely being pulled out from his waist band. Mugen spotted the reflected light from the pistol the moment it was reached for. If this was the best the could do then they were as good as dead.

"Final warning boy...step down."

"Ah?" Lazily, Mugen stood with his shoulder slumped and only one hand grasping his sword. Shrugging his shoulders, he moved his sword around without much regard for the man at the other end of it. The sword swayed and moved in circles, still being mere centimeters from the man's throat- making him freeze like a statue. "I don't give a damn about your warnings-" He could feel his malicious nature start to rise, his blood pumping faster and harder, and his smirk couldn't be tamed. "I want to eat some meat tonight, got it?"

In this place, this once busy "city", she knew every one in it, and if new faces came everyone knew. Word travelled fast in a place like this, and business was always steady and even when it got slow everyone supported one another. People used to travel through this place everyday, new faces and stories were told, but now things were different. If some one went hungry, they got fed, if someone was cold, they were kept warm, and if someone was lonely there would always be a familiar smile to reassure things will get better. But something like this never happened before, what could possibly be done to correct the wrong doings that played before her.

Without any provocation, Mugen sliced the man's throat, red gushed from the wound like a waterfall. The wide eyed corpse fell to Mugen's side, right in front of their hostess. The eyes stared into hers, but what was most disturbing of all was that their wasn't any fear in the dead man's eyes- he didn't have a moment to process that his life was ending. The red liquid spewing from him instantly formed a puddle around his body, and around her. Her knees, and feet were soaked in the eerily warm fluid, staining every part of her it touched.

"Get the hell back inside."

She hesitated, not initially realizing he was talking to her. She couldn't breath, no matter how hard she tried everything in her was frozen- including her mind. She didn't know what to do, or how to do the things that seemed so simple before. How did she ever move her legs before this? Was breathing always this hard to do? Did she always feel this heavy? A warm hand gently pulled her up to her feet and pulled her from the most monstrous sight she had ever seen. The blade didn't stop with the single death, it swung time and time again, but there was no clang from metal meeting metal. It was always a clean swipe, always followed by a curdled gasp. The loose horses stomped around, running in different directions away from the slaughter. _No matter how deep Fuu-chan said to look down, there was no kindness in that man, there was no good-only evil.._ _.. no man could do such a thing no matter the reason, not with that look in his eyes...not without hestitating... he was a monster._

"Neesan-"

Who was talking to her?

"Neesan, look at me!"

Two soft hands pressed firmly on her face, guiding her eyes to look at the large brown ones filled with concern. Back safely inside the Inn, she finally was able to focus her attention on everything around her. Her feet, knees and parts of her legs began to chill from the liquid staining her clothes, the outline of the setting stains were already starting to turn into a dark hue of brown.

"It's okay Neesan, just breathe! Mugen will take care of those guys-"

"No!" Frantically pushing Fuu away, the hostess backed herself away from her. Her knees and hands shaking. _'No good can come from them- from this!'_ "He's going to get us all killed! They'll come back and wipe us out!" Clutching her head she stared down at her still growing belly, the future was now muddier than it ever was before.

"N-Neesan, calm down, it's okay-" In an attempt to calm down the woman once again, Fuu stepped closer, resting her hands on her shoulders. The woman looked undeniably scared, her entire body was shaking, her pupils nothing more than dots in her eyes and the colour was drained from her face.

"It's not okay! That monster has doomed my Inn...he's doomed my baby's future!" Tears flooded from her eyes as the woman finally gave in and accepted Fuu's comfort.

Fuu patted her on the back, allowing her shoulder to soak up the tears. Something like this never bothered Fuu too terribly much, even before she met Jin and Mugen she would often see people getting cut down in the streets, but this place was different. It was much smaller and didn't have the population to carry different groups of people; here everything seemed simple. But...this was the first time she heard someone call Mugen a monster and it irked her. Sure..he was reckless and tended to fight more than the average person but then again, Mugen was anything but average. Even if it seemed ruthless of him, those men outside have probably done worse to much more innocent people. Assumptuous as it may be, those men weren't innocent, otherwise Mugen wouldn't be doing what he's doing. She's never seen him hurt someone that didn't deserve it, maybe he overreacted sometimes but it was never over nothing.  
Monsters were creatures without remorse or feeling. They were only there to scare other's and to feed their own greed with power. They hid in the shadows, in closets and in the imagination of children... Mugen wasn't a monster... He was the person that kept the monsters from her.

"Mugen won't lose to them. You'll see..." Smoothing the hair of the still sobbing woman Fuu could feel the tears soaking more and more of her kimono.

The echoing sound of a gunshot rang through the air, and then there was s second one shot before the ringing of the first faded.

Her head snapping towards the entrance Fuu knew something was off, she could no longer hear the shouts and shuffle of the debacle.

"Neesan, stay here, everything will be okay." Pulling herself from the still sobbing woman, Fuu ran out of the Inn, to see nothing but the dead bodies spewed about, 6 of them to be precise. Off to the side was Mugen's sword, with blood over the handle. "Mugen?" Looking down the road her eyes followed the sound of the stomping hooves of horses. Behind one horse, she was sure it was him. Dragging on the ground, bringing up dust was a struggling body, no longer clad in red it was hard for her to believe it was him- but who else could it be? Picking up Mugen's blade she knew she didn't have a choice. If it was her on the ground he wouldn't hesitate, and she didn't have the strength of the blue samurai to rely on.

Remembering the events of earlier, Fuu found the bright colour hanging out back- she draped the red material over her kimono and wiped the blood from the blade and her hands off on the grass below.

"Neesan...I'll be back.. Please have faith in Mugen and I." Before stepping out the door, Fuu listened as the woman's breathing calmed and the sobbing began to cease. "Sometimes...monsters have good intentions."

Like a cape, the red haori barely hung around her tiny body as she ran- being mindful of the blade she carried with her. She followed the hoof prints and the large scuff marks that were left by Mugen on the dusty road. At first the scuff marks seemed frantic but eventually they grew into a solid smooth line on the middle of the empty country road. Where exactly would this lead her? Would she be running all day? Would she even catch up to them? These were only a few things that Fuu contemplated but she knew she couldn't doubt herself already, not when she just started. Eventually the road was surrounded by thick large trees and she recognized it. It was the same road that her and Mugen had taken the day before, there wasn't another town for days. If that was where they were going then Mugen would as good as gone by the time she would catch up. Pressing on, the trail left on the road veered off to the right-into the trees. It would be harder for her to follow now, she wasn't the best at tracking without a trail- she only hoped that the grass would still be pressed down enough for her to see.

As luck, or fate would have it, the trail was still easily seen and branches were snapped along the way- confirming that she was indeed going in the right direction. Not once had she stopped running, she gripped Mugen's blade tightly in both hands- the weight of it was starting to wear down her arms. She wasn't use to carrying such a thing for this long, and she knew Mugen would need it so setting it aside wasn't an option.

How long had she been running now? _'Too long...'_ She thought. Her legs were starting to feel heavy, as were her arms.

The whinnying of horses made her crash herself against a tree.

With shallow breaths, she finally felt how hard her heart was beating and how badly her lungs burned. Leaning into the tree as much as she could, she tried her best to blend in but red and pink seemed to clash against the colours of nature. The sun was steadily setting on the horizon, painting everything a slight orange. The shadows of the trees and everything else around her stretched outward. Somehow she had made it this far without being discovered, but that's probably because they weren't expecting anyone else. Why would they? They had no knowledge of her existence nor of her connection to the man that she assumed were holding prisoner. She held Mugen's blade pointed up towards the sky, gripping the handle with both hands tightly. If needed, she would have to use it, but she knew she wouldn't be able to swing it the way Mugen did. She never really used a sword before, only her tanto which was still secure in her kimono. She hadn't used the tanto since she was attacked by Yue, and she was starting to grow nervous. Not at what she was about to do but at the unknown state of her companion and the possibility of her failure was all too real. No matter how hard her heart hit her chest, or how much she felt like throwing up- this wasn't the time to back down.

In a small clearing about 5 rows of trees away she could see the plethora of wagons and tents. Horses were tied to make shift posts, without water or food. Stomping their front hooves on the ground they pulled at the tethers around their neck and mouths. She felt for them, but unfortunately they weren't why she was here. She could hear the snickering and talking from the many bodies that inhabited the makeshift camp but their words weren't fully ledgeble. She wanted to get a better view of the tents but her dusty pink kimono and Mugen's red haori wasn't the best for camofluage. It would be better for her to wait for night to consume the area but would that be too late?

A loud commotion brought her attention to the other side of the camp. Adjusting her back on the tree she looked out on the other side, where men were strewn on the ground on the outside of a tent. _'Well..that's where Mugen is.'_ Time and time again, unarmed men entered the tent to only be kicked out once again. At least she knew he was in good enough condition that he was fighting, and for some reason they were keeping him alive. The fat man that attempted to collect from the Inn stood at the front of the tent. He seemed to be leaning quite dependently on a large cane. He let out a large laugh before entering the tent- only he wasn't thrown out like the other's. He didn't seem to have a weapon on him, so resting assured, she let her weight fall to the ground- she had time to wait for night.

* * *

Every single one of them were pathetic, 4 men lay at his feet bleeding out. This wasn't any fun, there was no thrill to fights like this- when he doesn't even have to try, he can just swing and it's over. What the hell kind of "criminals" were they? Did they think that if she showed up with a large group that they could just get away with anything? Sure this place was a quiet little shit hole and maybe that's why, but still. Even if you got shit for brains you know to bring some real muscle with you.

He heard two clicks at once.

"Heh..it's about god damn time you guys got serious." Looking over his shoulder one man had a pistol ready, aiming at him, and another one in similar make and style was to his left. It was nothing he hadn't already dealt with, but he had to admit he was surprised by the amount of pistols this group seemed to have. Rather than relying on physical power and sword play they decided to skip any sense of skill at all. Pistols were supposedly easy to use, you just point, aim, and fire. But where was the fun in that? Mugen liked the feel of the blade in his hand, he like the feeling of resistance when he cut into the person in front of him, and then the freeing sensation when he was finally able to cut all the way through. "But, it's still not good enough!"

As soon as he moved a muscle a shot was fired at him from his left side. Somehow he managed to escape the bullets path, spinning around him, he hit the pistol out of the man's hands and Mugen's chest was inches from the attackers back- with his sword sticking out of the man's stomach. Pushing the himself and the bleeding man forward, they knocked over the other man with a pistol- sending them both to the ground.

 **POW**

Mugen's sword clanged on the ground, as his right hand lost its grip, along with most of the flesh that separated his thumb from his index finger. The skin pulled away from the force of the bullet, revealing the tissue that lay underneath. At the same time, a wiry rope wrapped itself over Mugen's vision- giving him but a moment to figure out what was happening. Somehow snaking his left hand onto the rope, he tried to pull it away from him but it was quickly pulled tight around his hand and throat. With the whinny of a horse Mugen was then pulled down onto the ground. The fat bastard laughed as Mugen was dragged on the ground behind him.

"Let's give this boy the scenic route to the after life shall we?"

Those still left alive regrouped their horses and they went off on their way. Every bump and stone dug into his back and rear end. The rope was pulled right enough that his head was elevated from the ground- if the dumb pricks intended to kill him this way then they should have made sure that his head would be able to hit the rocks. Or maybe they intended for this to strangle him, but they didn't bother to look. If they did they would see that Mugen managed to get his hand between the rope and his neck which gave him enough space for shallow breaths. His eyes didn't look to the sky but he looked down the road that he was dragging on, and despite all the dust he was able to see the shapely body wearing pink.

 _'Don't be stupid, just stay where you are.'_

Somewhere deep down, he knew she wouldn't sit still and wait. So his mind was already in works of trying to figure out how to get himself out of this mess, and eventually how to save her ass once again.

He tried to grab the rope with his right hand but the wound left by the bullet made it impossible for him to grip hard enough, he knew he could still move his fingers but he had no more feeling. With a sudden turn Mugen dragged along the side, whipping around as the rope and his body's momentum tried to correct itself with the horse. His body rolled and his back met with the bark of a tree, his body tensed and his muscles contracted- knocking what little air he had out of him. And then...black.

* * *

The sun was close to being set, but it was dark enough that Fuu new she could take action. The once vibrant green of the grass and trees around her and the bright red and pink that she wore were dim enough that they started to blend into the same colour family thanks to the shadows. The chill of the night was already creeping up on her, as bumps formed on her exposed skin. Her joints and body were beginning to ache from being in the same position for who knows how long. Her knuckles where white as she was still gripping Mugen's sword, taking a breath she needed to make her way closer to where she assumed Mugen was.

Being mindful of the roots and bushes around she ran around the rows of trees, hiding her body against one periodically to see if anyone had noticed her. So far nothing. Although relieved she was kind of disappointed in the fact that for a supposed group of "thugs" they seemed really relaxed. They just say around the camp, talking every now and then- but nothing else. You would think that some of them would at least be making rounds to make sure no one was coming- Fuu was sure she could make a better criminal than them. Rolling her eyes at her own thoughts, she continued on until the tent she was aiming for was only 4 trees away. Looking out from behind her current position she could see the shadows of the individuals on the inside, they muddled together and she wasn't able to tell who was who. ' _Wait...is that the right tent?'_ Her shoulders slumped as he looked at the other nearby tents that were only a few yards away from one another. They all looked the same to her. Her eyes widened and she started to panic as she doubted her memory. _'Ahhh what if I get the wrong one?!'_  
During her moment of panic the weight of Mugen's blade got the better of her, almost dropping it on the ground she corrected her grip just as it fell onto a small bush- snapping and breaking the twigs. Although that wouldn't have been enough to get any of their attention, she accidentally let out a yelp. She Froze against the tree as she listened, her breathing was deep again, she felt like everyone around could suddenly hear her. She felt like it was now or never. Running out from behind the tree she closed the distance between her and the row of tents. Trying to keep her breathing down, she knelt on the ground, trying to stay close to one of the tents but not close enough that she would indent the material. She could hear someone talking on the inside but it wasn't Mugen.

"Think about it-"

 _'Think about what?'_

The shadows still offered no tale on who or what was happening on the inside. She needed to be able to see before she could decide on what to do. But there was no guarantee that this was the right tent- but she had to trust her gut. Gently setting aside Mugen's blade, Fuu pulled out the tanto from her kimono. Pressing it lightly to the tent, she hoped the blade would be sharp enough to cut the material cleanly without pulling. With a flick of her wrist, she made a small slit that would allowed her to look inside. Lowering herself she looked, and she couldn't help but be relieved that she was right; but what she saw brought her back down to reality.

She now knew what the gun shots were about and why Mugen's sword was left behind. Red covered the hands of her companion and rope bound them behind his back. He seemed to be tied to a post much like the horses outside, the post ran between his arms and against his back, and the rope weaved between them, tied in a terrible knot around his wrists. Red flowed from the exposed flesh of his right hand, and the rope greedily tried to soak it up, but it now too dripped with saturation. His head and shoulders hung slightly- he must have been exhausted.

"-You have until morning, if you don't bleed out before then." The same hearty laugh she heard entering the tent was now leaving, taking the only source of light with him. During the time she waited for the sun to go down she didn't see anyone else enter the tent after the fatso did. She also didn't see him leave, he must have had some business to discuss with Mugen. If he was just mad at Mugen killing his men, he would have been as good as dead already. For some reason they were keeping him alive, but Fuu wasn't going to wait around for morning to find out.

Using her tanto once again, she made the slit large enough for her to crawl through and into the dark tent. She stayed on her knees, keeping her lower half outside of the tent and stretched her upper body inside. Mugen was only about 2 feet away from where she was looking-making it easy for her to reach him.

Her self mere inches away from him and the post she watched his motionless body. "Mugen?" Her voice was hardly a whisper.

"Heh..." Raising his head, he knocked it lightly against the post in an attempt to straighten his posture. "How'd I know you wouldn't be able to mind your own business?" His voice was drained, and groggy. It was like he was 3 days into a bad cold where phlegm plagued his throat.

"Shhh...I'll get you out of here." Using her tanto she started cutting through the rope in a saw motion. Running the blade back and forth as fast as possible she made sure to do so on rope that lay over the post. He was able to feel the relief on his arms as soon as the rope fell, but the rope still bound his wrists. He felt her little fingers touch down his arms and then to his wrists.

"Bitch don't you cut me..." What normally would have been a stingy statement seemed to be held back by the fatigue in his voice.

"Jeez, just be quiet and let me do this." Feeling the rope and the small gap where his wrists would be separated once the rope was gone, Fuu began to cut in a similar motion as before- only slower.

Feeling the tension around his wrists loosening, he pulled his arms- breaking the last few threads tying himself together. "Man that feels good." Stretching and cracking a few places, Mugen stood up before turning to look down at Fuu. Although dark they were able to make out some of each other's features. Even in the dark she knew that his face was beaten and bruised. His one eye was almost swollen shut and his lip almost looked as bad as hers before.

"Okay, come on, let's get out of here Mugen."

"You go...I'm not going until every last one of them is dead."

 **"What's this?"**

"Hwuah!" Losing her balance, Fuu's upper body fell to the ground as someone from the outside was pulling on her legs and hips. Getting flipped onto her back she was outside again. Her eyes met with two very confused men- they didn't seem like they were going to harm her. They looked just unsure on what to do as she. "W-Well, this isn't my tent. What was I thinking? Ha..hahaa.." Trying to smile and laugh Fuu knew there was no talking her way out of this one. Trying to support herself back up, she felt her left hand brush against the handle of Mugen's sword that was still undetected by the two in front of her.

"Looks like we have ourselves a kitten." Their once innocent gazes showed their true motives.

Her pink handled blade shot out of the tent, forming a new hole in the material and in the sternum of one of the nameless men. Before the other man had a chance to react, Mugen's body, being led by his steel plated geta, ripped through the tent and into the face of the other man. At the same time both the bodies fell to the ground. Mugen's legs now towered on both sides of her, with his body hovering over her stomach. Getting a better view of his back, his once white shirt was absolutely without a doubt ruined.

"Here, Mugen!" awkwardly tossing up Mugen's blade to him he caught it in his left hand- which was probably the only one he was able to use.

"This ain't the place for someone like you- get the hell outta here." Without waiting for her response Mugen dashed off, into the center of the camp. Immediately she heard protests followed by the usual agonizing gasps and shouts of those who Mugen found first. There was one scream in particular that sent chills down Fuu's spine- she didn't want to know what Mugen was doing to him to make a grown man make that sounds.

Pulling her tanto out of the man she wiped the blood off on the grass before putting it back into its sheath. She kept it in her hands just in case she would need it but she could potentially help Mugen without being direct. There were a lot of tents and wagons here, surely there was something she could do to help. She couldn't help but watch the shadows that for some reason still lingered in the tents instead of helping those who were clearing in agony. Going over to the next tent Fuu raised her foot but hesitated; their words helped fill in some of the blanks.

"That sick bastard..."

"Boss must be angry again...what's that? The third time this week?"

Their boss must be known for taking his anger out on his own men. _'What a piece of work.'_ But it wasn't Fuu's problem, if they figured out it was Mugen's doing and not their bosses it would cause more problems. Raising her foot back again, she kicked the tent pegs from the ground, causing the tent to fall in on itself. The people on the inside struggled trying to find their way out under the weight of the material. She continued to do so down the line of temporary lodgings. Those that were illuminated slowly started to smoke before they caught on fire. Lanterns, once knocked over were very flammable, and their fire tended to spread quickly. Fuu hoped that they wouldn't cause another forest fire- she was beginning to feel like a pyromaniac. Her eyes watched each time, looking for the bodies that would surely escape and go running out, but...it never happened.

* * *

He was going to go on a rampage, and he was going to make sure to make that obese slob suffered. His left hand tingled as blood was finally able to rush to it again. He tightened his grip on his sword to make sure the numb feeling didn't get the best of him. This would be relatively quick- other than guns they didn't seem to have any skill in combat, and with it being night it would be even harder for them to aim. The only reason he was in this condition was because the fat ass tied him up, and made two of his bitches held his legs down while he beat his face with a damn walking stick. The guy was so fat he couldn't even walk on his own. Mugen made a mental note to break that stupid stick as well.

Walking past a few horse posts, Mugen cut the ropes without stopping- some horses stayed where they were, whereas others made a break for it. The sound of the hoofs caught the attention of the few men that were still gathered outside. Mugen didn't have the time to pretend he believed in a things like fair chances and honor. Kicking between the shoulders of one individual, Mugen knocked him down into the blazing fire. Ashes in his eyes and face, the man soon was consumed by the flames as he tried to roll out of it. His agonizing scream echoed through the camp.

"Stay still if ya want to make this quick."

Still not able to feel his fingers on his right hand, Mugen knew he wouldn't be able to use it, but that didn't mean his arm was useless. Crashing his right elbow into the skull of the nearest guy, Mugen thrust the blade through his shoulder and spun himself in a semi circle, tossing the body from his blade into another's, making them tumble to the ground. In a "two-for-one", Mugen thrust his blade down into the guts of both men while keeping another at bay with his legs. Leaving his sword sticking out of the two men on the ground, Mugen grabbed the throat of another, lifting the short man off the ground. The smell in the air almost reminded him of his pirating days- if only the savoury scent of the sea tickled his senses. But it was more than just the smoke, it was the burning flesh in the pit, and the smell of burning and melting materials. Holding the man up, Mugen looked past him to see tents collapsed and flames start to engulf them. _'She never listens does she?'_ The movements of the man in Mugen's grasp stopped, letting go of the body, it hit the ground with a hard thud.

"Ah for fuck sakes girl!"

* * *

After about the 5th tent she started to feel bad, she watched as the tents were consumed by flames and the bodies that fought to get their way out eventually stopped moving. A terrible, terrible smell made its way to her- it was them, she knew it was. The stench was enough to make her want to empty her stomach but she couldn't let Mugen do this alone. He seemed determined to make sure none of them got away, and she would just have to trust his judgement. Just the thought sent chills down her body. _'Trust Mugen's judgement.'_ Just thinking that felt wrong, but she was already in too deep. Continuing her way, she kicked more pegs out of the ground but there were no more struggling figures from underneath the material. Everything she was looking at switched direction as her feet were swept out from under her and she collided with the ground. A surprised yelp escaped her as well as most of the air in her lungs.

"You bitch!"

Shifting her head to the side she dodged the blade that was thrust down at her. If it wasn't for the fire's reflected light on the blade she never would have seen it.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Kicking her leg up, she almost felt bad for him. The tip of her shoe connected with the delicate spot between his legs- she felt something crack. Internally she was apologizing to him but, it was him or her.

"Close your eyes!"

"Huh?" Not sure why but her body complied with the command before her mind could think of why. Her mind ran through every single thought imaginable but that still wasn't long enough. Her mother often told her that curiosity killed the cat, Fuu would always retort with _"I guess that's why cats have nine lives."_. But Fuu, Fuu only had one life. One chance to make it worth it in the end, and every moment could only be lived once. So why was it in this particular moment she decided to open her eyes again, why didn't she wait just 10 more seconds?

A large hand was pulling the man's scalp back, forcing his chin into the air and leaving himself wide open for what was already in progress. Her eyes took in every detail of the shining blade running across his unguarded neck. Every piece of skin separated to be replaced with ever flowing red that ran down his body. The hand released the man, tossing it to the side with what seemed like a hollow thud.

Shadows and flickering lights seemed to be battling territory over the large body that stood before her. His breathing was raspy and short, bringing his right hand up her wiped some blood from his chin but his still open wound only smeared more on. For some reason Fuu couldn't bring herself to look away from him, nor could she move her body. Something overtook her senses and her body- she knew she had felt this way before...but when?

 _-bright yellow petals and dark centers stared at her. Looking to her left hand, the red thread attached to her pink still pulled taut, straight into the field of flowers. But somehow, she couldn't bring herself to follow the thread any longer- not in there._

Since when did something so familiar become so scary for her? No...not just something, but someone. She had seen him fight before, countless times- but this seemed different. Killing in itself was cruel, but it was a way of life for many- kill or be killed. But suddenly...Mugen didn't look like Mugen. There was something much more ominous about him. His swollen face like a mask, the blood of other's like his preferred face paint...and the flames around him were his element. He really did look like a monster fully consumed by evil.

When the strings of fate were explained to her, she knew sometimes the strings of other's would get tangled with hers, making the path to the other end more difficult. But those criss crossed threads would be hard to untie, ultimately making connections that would be hard to break. But for the one at the other end, their impact would be unknown until you found them. There was no guarantee that the person at the end would impact your for the greater good or not. It was only said that the both of them would be profoundly and forever changed by it. Whether the meeting is small, or if it jumps out at you, like a firework- it had been planned since the beginning of existence. The small finger of her left hand seemed to twitch, like it had been pulled- bringing her senses back.

 _'That's right...it's just Mugen..'_

Her mind was only concentrating on what it had barely processed. Was she really going to let something that took a few seconds over take the countless moments and seconds that had already taken place? And what about the moments that hadn't happened yet? Her body was now taking in the warmth of the ferocious flames that she set, the red hued light started to dance over everything in the area. Like red threads crossed in every direction, the overwhelming feelings that consumed her seemed to be gone. Propping herself up on her left elbow she outstretched her other hand and pointed at Mugen who still stood before her. Just because something might look scary, or even behave scary, doesn't mean that it is to be feared. Sometimes there really is such a thing as a necessary evil.

"What are you doing just standing there for?! I thought you said you weren't going to leave until every last one of them was dead?!"

Smirking and letting out a half impressed chuckle Mugen nudged her leg with his foot. "If I didn't have to save your sorry ass I would be done already."

With all her tension washed away Fuu began to sit up. "Mugen, look!" Pointing back to the camp, they had been so busy in their own turn of events that they didn't notice the two wagons begin to make their escape.

"AWH HELL NO!"

Fuu had only seem Mugen run this fast twice before. Once when he decided to skip out on their bill after a large meal, and the second time when they had played baseball against the Americans. How he managed to munster up that amount of energy so fast was beyond her. But when he had his mind set on something, he wouldn't stop until it was done. Perhaps that's why she didn't try to stop him- if Mugen wanted somebody dead it was usually for the best. And even if she disagreed with him its not like he would listen to her.

With quick footwork, Mugen made his way after the wagons that were still trying to pick up speed. However, the thick tall grass made it difficult as there was no clear path for them to go down. Putting the blade between his teeth Mugen grabbed the back of the wagon with his left hand and jumped in. Mid air, Mugen released his grip and allowed his momentum to carry him in, removing the blade from his mouth. There were only 4 men, plus the driver. As soon as his foot stepped on the wooden planks of the wagon, a shot was fired at him-grazing his ear. A small "tick tick" hit the bottom of the wagon as his jade earring fell from where it use to be.

Unfazed by his second gun shot wound, Mugen glared at the men who seemed to cower at the still standing man. With shaking hands the pistol was in an attempt at being reloaded.

"Heh, it's my turn now."

With great ease, Mugen cut the men were they kneeled. They didn't beg for mercy or to be spared- maybe a worse fate awaited them if they returned. The wagon seemed to be bumping around more than it should, almost knocking Mugen out. Looking behind him he saw a lifeless body rolling out from underneath- apparently the driver felt bailing was the better option. The other wagon was barely in front of him, so he needed to bail before the horses decided to veer off or slow down. The pistol that shot him lay on the wagon, in front of the fallen man- the ash that would set off the matchlock was still lit. This wasn't the first time Mugen held a gun, but he didn't like them. It had nothing to with them being considered dishonourable or them being a cowards way of fighting, but where was the satisfaction in aiming and shooting? Where was the fun in that? Sticking the blade into the wooden grains below him, Mugen aimed the pistol at one of the shadowed figures rocking in the other wagon. With a bang, the shadowed figure fell off the wagon, and spooking both sets of horses. The other wagon veered left, and his continued on straight. Blade in tow, Mugen jumped down and walked after the other wagon. There was no need to rush, the horses would only get so far in the dark of the night, especially since trees and branches weren't cleared.

"You gotta be fucking kidding me."

The horses came to a halt and Mugen was met with the empty wagon. He didn't see anyone run from it, nor did he see anyone jump out of it. Kicking the wagon wheel he felt defeated, but most of all pissed off. All those other guys were just a bonus, the real prize was going to be the agonizing look on that fat bastards face as he cut his fingers off one by one (amung other things). Just thinking about it made Mugen feel excited, he had lots planned for the fat man, and he would be damned if he let him get away. But if he wasn't here, then where as he?

The camp was quiet, other than the cracking of the multiple fires there as nothing else to be heard. She couldn't bring herself to stay within the camp, so she found herself sitting against a tree where she still had full view of everything. Mugen never said if she should wait here or not, but she didn't want to leave him behind- and she didn't pay much attention on the way here so she knew she would wind up lost if she went on her own. She pulled her arms out of Mugen's haori sleeves and hugged herself, trying to fight away the cold night air. Her heat problem could be solved if she went back into the camp but she felt uneasy knowing that in every fire were bodies. Even if she tried to push it our of her mind, her nose knew. She shifted herself and hugged her knees, pulling herself more into the large red material. It was eye opening to her to how small she was compared to Mugen. She never really thought of it before, but it was hard not to when something that seemed to fit him so well completely flooded over her. She rested her mouth and chin on the tops of her knees, pressing her nose into the material, Fuu couldn't help but take it all in.

 _'It even smells like him...'_

Even though he usually smelled like sweat, the haori didn't seem to. It definitely had a different scent to it but it was nice. It had a strong natural odour to it- like walking through the mountains. After all, wandering is what Mugen did, he had probably been all over Japan ten times over. She knew at one point he was a pirate, had he been anywhere other than Japan? How far onto the ocean did he go?

Glazed eyes caught sight of the tall figure walking through the center of camp. Removing herself from her small ball of warmth she created for herself, she sprinted towards him.

"Mugen, are you okay?" With a large, almost over exaggerated gasp, Fuu caught sight of his left earlobe. It was the exact one she had pulled on earlier . "Your ear!"

"Did you see anyone?" Ignoring her concern and question, his eyes seemed to be looking everywhere except at her.

"Huh? Who would I see out here other than you?"

He figured as much. Somehow during all the commotion the fatso waddled away. The guy left his men behind to give himself a clean getaway- usually they would be out barking some half assed commands on how to stop him but he didn't. He kept himself quiet and snuck out. He could go looking for him but what would the chances of going in the same direction be? Mugen wasn't good at math but even he knew the odds were low, it was dark and to be honest, he was exhausted. "I'm tired..let's go.."

Walking straight Mugen dragged his blade on the ground. He had faced tougher foes, and in greater numbers but his body still seemed to ache. He had never been dragged behind a horse before, that and he was tied and beaten. He figured he probably looked like a baboons ass this time, but he had tough skin and he would heal fast. He always did. What was concerning to him was that he still couldn't move or feel his right hand. Somehow these amateurs got him good, and if it wasn't for the little ball of pink next to him he probably would have bled out while the assholes slept. The stupid, tiny, annoying, useless pink actually did something right- even if she almost got herself killed...again.

"Hey Mugen..."

"Hah?"

"You know how to get back to the Inn, right?"


	7. Chapter 6 - Unfairly Jaded (Part 1 of 2)

**Hello everyone!** **I would like to apologize about how long it took me to post this chapter. I completely forgot that it was Thanksgiving weekend (here in Canada), so I had like 3 days straight of nothing but family gatherings and huge meals (I'm pretty sure I had like... 3 pies to myself- I regret nothing). I also started watching 4 new series, including The Ancient Magus' Bride (YAY FINALLY, I'VE BEEN READING IT FOREVER, so I am quite happy to finally be able to watch it).**

 **I am at 10 followers now on this story which makes me so happy. I really appreciate all of the positive feedback. Every single review I get makes me feel so happy, and people seem to be picking up on things about the characters and the story without me having to be upfront about. I'm still having some troubles with who Mugen is in the show versus how I want him to start transitioning in the story. Mugen is a ruthless badass through and through and honestly it is really hard to write him having genuine concern for another person.**

 **If anyone is quite familiar on Japan's geography and the corresponding wildlife I would like to apologize, I try to do as much research as possible but it all seems to become mush in my brain after reading page after page.**

 **Chapter 6 - Unfairly Jaded (Part 1 of 2)**

* * *

The world is an unfair place.

Unless you look a certain way, or behave a certain way, those around you will turn their backs. No matter the good intentions, it is only seen and interpreted by the most basic of things- appearances. They can and will always see the dirty clothes, and scar riddled skin.

Though there were far more evil, and disgusting people in the world, this happened because he wasn't in their spectrum, nor was he comparable to the ever day man. He was one of his own kind- his own creation. Born and molded by the Ryukyu Islands, by the pirates he banded with, and by copper essence flowing through their veins. He no longer outwardly desired to be seen as "bad", not that the word bothered him because he knew that he was far from being considered "good" (whatever that meant). But who decided which was which? The "bad" outweighed the "good" in the universe, so why was it a problem to be the way he was? What was wrong with having a hands on approach to those that made you mad, or to those who just simply got in your way? The both of them knew the world was outwardly unfair. Mugen especially learned this lesson early in life. Fuu liked to believe she knew this just as well as he, but yet, every time the world decided to teach her this lesson time and time again, she couldn't help but feel the way she did.

Bitter. Discouraged. Sour. Cheated.

Her companion stood next to her weary, and surely dizzy. His once tanned face seemed paler in colour, and for good reasons. His face a ballooned version of its usual state, his right hand wrapped in a now red cloth, and his ear crusted with dried blood. Honestly, he couldn't just stand there watching her anymore. He was use to this kind of treatment but she wasn't. She was always welcome everywhere with warm open arms, no one ever hesitated with her. Not with those bright brown eyes and smile. But when they saw him, it was a completely different story. For some reason when they saw her with him, he could see the way their expressions changed. How they suddenly looked at her almost the same way they looked at him. It was unfair. The way her shoulders slumped, and the defeated look on her face. He just couldn't do it. It was best to keep moving so that was exactly what he did. It had been a long day, a tiring one at that. He still had to give her shit about coming after him but he didn't have the energy, he didn't have the desire to bring her down anymore than what she already was.

Grabbing her bag that lay on the dirty ground in front of the Inn, Fuu slid her arms through the small straps- feeling the bag bounce against the small of her back- it felt heavier than she remembered. But that could just be the disappointment in that Fuu's words didn't reach the woman. Momo, scurried her way up Fuu's kimono sleeve and rested in the little space that was available in the bust. Fuu tried not to blame the hostess, afterall they were just strangers so there was no basis for her to place her trust. She couldn't be blamed. It must have come across as a real shock to see what she saw, and maybe this was the only way she knew how to express how scared and alone she really felt. In this town and in this Inn, they were just travellers, people that would fade to the back part of their memories and those who played a part in a sad and seemingly unjust event.

But...

Why was it so hard for everyone else to see what she saw?

They saw a man whom they didn't know, do things that they didn't quite understand. They didn't think of the reason behind it, all they saw was red. So that's what they thought he was, but not in the same way she did. To them, the red was violent, and it stained the road that cut through their town. But to her it was much more. Much, much more.

And why did it bother her so much that they didn't see it?

"Well, we're not going to get much done just staying here, let's go!" Internally perking herself up she turned and smiled at where her companion once stood. Blinking a few times in her state of confusion she saw him already walking down the road in the direction that they hadn't travelled yet. "Mugen, don't just leave without me!"

He mumbled something back at her but she wasn't able to make it out. His expression still sour and stiff- probably trying to put up a front so she wouldn't see just how tired he really was.

They walked quite a ways out of the town before they decided to take refuge once again in the trees. They went far enough that hopefully whatever fire they were able to make wouldn't be seen but close enough that they might be able to hear those that would travel down the old dusty road. Fuu used her sandal to dig a small pit into the ground, and she tossed some twigs and smaller branches onto the cold exposed soil before Mugen started a fire with the bottom of his geta and a stone.

Once the flames lit up their bodies and some of their surroundings Fuu pulled out her small sewing box from her bag. It wasn't medical grade supplies but it would have to do.

"Here, use this."

"The hell is that?" His voice still gruff, he attempted to clear his throat a few times but the problem wasn't caused by phlegm. It was from the force of the rope that dragged him on the ground, though it was a small price to pay for still being alive.

Shifting herself closer to him and his side of the fire she opened it up. "It's a sewing kit. I figured you could use it for your hand." Her eyes fell to the insanely saturated cloth wrapped around the wound. She only caught a glimpse of it, and really had no idea exactly how severe it really was.

"No."

"What do you mean no? If you don't do something you'll bleed to death!"

Knitting his eyebrows further he looked at her, not sure if she was actually this stupid or not. "Listen, if I was going to bleed to death I would already be on the ground somewhere."

"Well, you're techinically on the ground already, and you're white as a ghost!"

"Then you do it if you're that worried." Stretching his right hand over to her, she barely caught it with both of her hands before the dead weight of it would have hit the top of her lap.

Mugen sat with his legs apart but his knees up. His back was hunched and he rested his head on his left hand that was supported by his raised knee. His ballooned face made it uncomfortable for him, but hell- he was tired and his neck hurt so he didn't want to hang his head. He held his arm up for her as he watched her tiny fingers start to unwrap the cloth from around his hand.

She was nervous, what if it was beyond repair, what if he got blood poisoning? Or what if stitching it with the thin thread wouldn't be good enough?

Her own hands were cold, she could feel the stiffness in her fingers as she moved them but Mugen's still felt cold in comparison. Her face twisted when she got a good look at his hand. The webbing between his thumb and his index finger was almost all gone. What was left of the connection between the two fingers was peeled back onto the top his hand. She felt her stomach twist and churn when she caught sight of the bone that was the lower knuckle of his thumb.

He let out a tired laugh watching her face. She had already seen enough death and violence so why the hell couldn't she handle this? She looked like she was going to faint.

"It will be fine, just let me wrap it-"

"No!" He went to pull his arm back but she grabbed his wrist desperately. Although her grip wasn't very strong and if he really wanted to he could easily pull away from her, he stopped. "I swear Mugen, you'll really die one of these days. And it might not be in a fight!" Shaking her head at him, she seemed to be taking the role of a nagging parent again. "It will probably be from some kind of infection you know. That's why you should take better care of yourself."

"Everyone's gonna die someday. What's it matter if it's today or tomorrow?"

"You know Mugen-" Pulling out a needle from her little kit, Fuu set it on a stone on the edge of the fire. She had been told that if you get metal hot enough it will become sterile. "I think if you really felt that way you wouldn't fight as hard as you do. And you wouldn't be saving people for dumplings either." She looked at the little selection of thread that she had. She needed something strong enough to hold, but not thick enough that it would be hard to pull through his tissue. She had never done this before but she selected one that looked similar to what was used on her. "But then again...if you did die I wouldn't owe you 250 dumplings anymore.."

The last part she said under her breath but Mugen still heard it loud and clear.

"300, stupid, and don't you forget it. " He sneered at her, at least he tried too. Not fully turning his head to her he watched through quick glances. He still didn't have any feeling in his hand, and he wasn't able to move it at all. He watched her little fingers poke and move his hand, examining it from all angles. But none of it was felt. There was no sensation or warmth radiating from her hand.

 _'Maybe I should just let him die.'_ Shaking her head she bit her tongue to keep from arguing with him. Pulling out the small canister of water Fuu rinsed off his hand. She expected some kind of reaction from him but there was nothing. She couldn't help but be nervous and impressed at the same time. She knew Mugen had a high pain tolerance but a person should still show some kind of reaction to this- wouldn't they? Gingerly, she attempted to grab the stone she set on the edge of the fire, but instantly regretted it when it was hotter than she imagined. "Ouch!"

"Fuck sakes, what do you think you're doing? Seriously girl.." Rolling his eyes, he reached over with his left hand and easily grabbed the stone out of the fire for her. Placing it on the grass next to her knees. Thanks to all the scar tissue and callouses on his fingers, heat didn't bother him as instantly as other's. "Don't just go sticking your fingers into a fire like that."

Putting one finger tip at a time in her mouth she licked the glossing skin, trying to relieve the stinging sensations. "Sowwy, Sheesh.." The finger tip muddled her speech, making her sound like a small child. Her lips pouted around her finger, pressing downward on her bottom lip.

For some reason, this caught Mugen's attention. He watched as her cheeks creased and then released with the action of her sucking on each of her scorched digits. Did she even realize what that resembled? What something like that can do to a guy? Of course she didn't, the girl was more innocent and naive than a damn baby bunny. Or maybe she was doing this on purpose. After all, she was almost 18, there was no way in hell she was still a virgin. _'Fucking hell girl._ ' Grabbing her hand away from her mouth, he couldn't help but internally shutter at the "pop" her lips made. It reminded him all too well of the fun he had been missing out on these last few months. "God damn it, stop it before I give you something else to suck on."

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?" Honestly, she had no idea what he meant. She figured he was just getting impatient and it was his way of saying _"Hurry up before I pop you one"_.

Laying himself down he rested his head on his left arm that hooked under him. The ground was making him even colder but he couldn't bring himself to ask for his haori back. Even though the girl seemed to fill out in some places she was still rather small- he could make due with just the fire. "Don't ask questions unless you're ready for the answers girly."

Still confused, Fuu decided it was best to leave it alone. Picking up the still warm needle from the stone, she managed to thread it on the first try. "Tell me if it hurts."

"It won't."

Her emotions were easily read on her face as she seemed to be mimicking him internally. ' _Maybe I should make it hurt, jerk.'_ . Folding the tissues back to where they should be Fuu went to work. She tried her best to properly secure the tissue between his thumb and index finger, but most of it that was hanging was just skin which would dry up and eventually fall off. The real problem was the chunk missing from the inner side of his thumb where the bone could be seen. She had kept the cloth over it with some pressure to keep the bleeding under control but now that she was trying to close it up, blood seemed to be squishing out. Surprisingly her hands were very steady during this and her focus was only set on closing the parted tissues. She lightly bit her bottom lip while deep in concentration. With two more x's on the inner part of his thumb she looped it through his skin one more time, making a tight knot before cutting the thread.

"There!" Smiling she was very happy with her work. She rinsed his hand one more time along with her hands, before patting everything dry with her kimono sleeve. "For my services you can deduct 100 dumplings!"

"You don't get to decide. I'll take off 25."

"What? Only 25?! That's not fair." Stuffing her sewing supplies in her bag she couldn't help but swing the bag roughly against the ground.

"Then complain to the dumpling committee. Oh wait-" Raising his head up he smirked at her. "-that's me."

Crossing her arms she couldn't help but pout. "At this rate I'll be stuck with you forever."

"In your dreams."

"More like nightmares!" Sticking her tongue out she tossed herself down in an exaggerated manner. She was so tired she didn't even mind how the cool ground still seemed to nip at her through her extra layer. Usually they would lay on opposites sides of the fire but tonight Fuu was too tired to move and Mugen already seemed to be relaxing in his current position. They laid not quite next to each other but they were close. Mugen's feet were close to Fuu's stomach and her feet directed by his hips. Hugging herself for warmth she gripped the red material that she wore tight in her hands. "Goodnight Mugen." Waiting for his response that didn't come, there was so much she wanted to ask him about what happened but in the silence her eyes fluttered shut and within seconds she was asleep.

With his eyes still open he looked at the shadows their two bodies made by the fire. He could feel the chill grow from his face, down his arms, chest and then eventually his legs. Fuu's body blocked quite a bit of the heat emitting from the fire, but there was still one area in particular that seemed to be hot. He had felt what was happening to him which was why he turned his back to her. Frustrated with his own body's reaction, he couldn't help but try to adjust himself and the pulsating desire that was sprung between his legs. The way Fuu's lips and cheeks creased as she tended to her fingers played over again in his head. There were countless things about her that irked him, but also things about his own behaviour were starting to get to him as well.

She seemed to be affecting him in different ways than what he was comfortable with. His eyes always seemed to follow her, he had to put extra effort into watching the road they walked on or he would purposely remove himself from her. Even at the Inn, he tried to leave her alone but despite his better judgment he waltzed back into the room. Everything he had been doing was a contradiction to the other- he wanted her gone, yet he added to her "debt", he found her voice unbearable but yet he was constantly picking at her, waiting for a response.

Groaning, he shut his eyes tightly.

Between what was going on in his mind, the wounds on his body and what was between his legs, he knew it would be a long night.

* * *

She couldn't believe it, why was life so unfair?

Hands on her knees she bent down closer to the scowling face. Her eyes squinted, looking at every detail of her annoyed companions face.

"Are ya about done? You're starting to piss me off."

"Shutup-"

Since they woke up in the morning all she did was stare at him. She didn't try to cover it up, or try to take a peek here and there, she just blatantly stared at him. Even when they started making their way back down the road her large eyes didn't leave him- it was infuriating to say the least. Finally he blew up at her and told her to get one final look or else he would make it so she couldn't see again.

"-I just don't get it..." Clenching her jaw she spoke through her teeth. She let her eyes roam over his face one last time. Most of the bruising was already gone, with the exception of his one eye which looked like was swollen shut last night. Then there was the small cut on his upper lip which looked like it could split open if he opened his mouth too wide. "It took me two weeks to heal, so why did it only take you one night?! It's not fair!"

"Heh-" Pushing on her forehead, Mugen stood up and with a little extra push he forced Fuu to take a few steps back. "Not everyone can be as amazing as me." He never got a look at himself last night so he really didn't understand what she was getting at but he always felt like he was a fast healer. Or he just didn't bother to pay attention to any pain- he had been tortured, sliced, shot, hit more times than he could count. Although, he still didn't have any feeling in his right hand but he could wiggle his fingers so that was good enough, and his ear was pulsing with his heartbeat. "Now, are ya done looking at me?"

"Hai Hai..." Pressing her fingers to her face, she squished her cheeks, remembering how horrible she looked before. _'It's really not fair.'_

Raising an eyebrow at her, Mugen watched as she seemed lost in her own thoughts. Somehow throughout all of the hustle and bustle of yesterday she seemed to be perked up again. She used to bounce back quite easily a few years ago, but she seemed melancholy during most of the trip so far. She had fastened her hair back up into the bouncy updo with the cheap wooden chopsticks. But she did it without a mirror and the sticks were already starting to slip out of place. How the hell could she be so airy and "gusty" at the same time? She was really something else, and it really...really...pissed him off. Clicking his tongue he started heading down the road again, forcing the small strided woman to catch up to him.

They seemed to walk most of the day, not crossing paths with any one or anything for that matter. The trees eventually spread out, leaving them walking on the empty countryside, surrounded by overgrown grass and distant mountains. Fuu seemed to be going on about something again, but he droned her out like he always did, or at least he tried too. But as much as he tried his ears took in every word she spoke, even if half of it didn't make any sense to him. His brain didn't have the capacity or the will to keep up with his ears or her mouth. She was talking about some sort of.. _'Huh what was it?...a dog or somethin'? Or was it food?..''_ Groaning for about the millionth time today his eyes scattered to their surroundings, which was nothing too spectacular. No rivers, towns, trees, or even a damn boulder. The mountains off in the distance seemed to be there only thing that could possibly guide them. Even the road they were on was starting to be consumed with weeds and grass. At some point they must have missed some signs or a turning point, but either way Mugen didn't want to end up sleeping in the open like this.

"Mugen, what are you doing?"

At some point while lost in thought, he stopped walking and stared off into the distance at the mountains. "There-" Outstretching his left hand he pointed. "-is where we're going."

Following the length of his arm and pointed finger Fuu's eyes looked over to the horizon. "Hah?! You're kidding right?!" Just looking at the distance made her legs ache, not to mention the bugs that might be hiding in the long grass. Just the idea of a beetle or centipede crawling up her leg gave her the heeby-jeebies. But the look on his face meant he was serious. "Nuh uh, no way Mugen!"

"Why not?"

"W-well, because there's a perfectly good road right here."

Rubbing his eyes, Mugen held back a yawn. "I guarantee in a few miles, there won't be a road left. Just don't argue with me"

Slumping her shoulders she looked onto the lush looking grass, but the unknown made her comfortable. "But..there's probably bugs..just think of all the ticks, and centipedes!"

"Are ya fucking kidding me? You're scared of some bugs?"

Just thinking of them gave her the chills. The creepy crawly endless row of legs, the elongated bodies, and the way their attenas twitched gave her endless nightmares. "They're not natural! Nothing is supposed to have that many legs. I am NOT going over there."

He looked at her, and considered his options. 1. He could just listen to her and continue on down this road that would eventually run out. 2. He could drag her along and listen to what would probable be hilarious reactions to every bug they came across. 3. Leave her.

"Then I guess-" Stepping off the road, the tall grass tickled against Mugen's legs with each step. "-see ya never girly."

"Wait, what?" Blinking a few times she watched as he seemed to start taking longer and faster strides away from her and the road. _'Is he really just going to leave me here?!'_ With her feet planted firmly on the ground she just watched him, uncertain on her own feelings on the matter. Sure she didn't want to be alone again but she always seemed to be able to find her place anywhere quite easily, and this would rid her of her dumpling debt. "Fine! Bye then!" Feeling a tickle on her chest, Momo popped out from her napping spot. The little critter jumped out of Fuu's kimono and into the grass, leaving the blades swaying in its scurried path. "Momo-san!"

 _'3...2...1.'_ He counted to himself, knowing all too well that she would coming running to him like a puppy. She would be yelling for him to slow down and wait all while calling him a jerk or something a long those lines- but there was nothing. All he could hear was the rustling the long grass made as he pushed his way through it all. Finally hearing her response it wasn't what he was expecting, _'-Bye then?'._ Placing his hand on his stomach something felt off, like something had just dropped and made him feel nauseas. Whatever this feeling was he didn't like it, not one bit. But what was he supposed to do? Turn around and ask the girl if she had any medicine? If he did that he might as well just grab her and bring her with him. No, scratch that. There was no damn way he was going to do that. _'That little bitch...'_ Something small jumped up onto his back and clung to his haori. Stopping he tried to look over his shoulder but he couldn't see anything. "What the fuck?!"

"Momo-san! What do you think you're doing?" Only a few paces behind, Fuu stopped running and tried to retrieve her furry friend from Mugen's back. However, Fuu's outstretched hand only seemed to make Momo scurry further up Mugen's back and over his shoulder.

"Looks like the rat is coming with me" Smirking at her with his lazy eyes he turned back and started walking away again, but he slowed his pace.

"Momo is not a rat!"

The feeling in Mugen's stomach somehow disappeared like it was never there in the first place, but her damn yapping was starting to make his head hurt all over again.

"Why are you smiling like that? You weirdo..." Matching her pace with his, Fuu found her natural place beside him. Though she only looked at his face by chance, she was really looking at Momo who seemed quite comfortably perched on his shoulder.

Pursing his lips out and clenching his jaw again he quickly changed his expression. He didn't realize he was smiling in the first place. "You're just seeing things."

"No, you were smiling. Like some creep." Running up in front of him and she stretched her mouth as far as it could go into an over exaggerated smile and pointed both index fingers at the corners of her lips. "Like this!"

 _'God damn it she's so weird..._ ' Honestly looking at her face now made him want to point and laugh but he couldn't let her have the upper hand in anything right now. Instead he just brushed shoulders with her as he pushed past. "Yea right, if I ever smile like that you better run cuz' that means my mind finally snapped."

Something was strangely eery about the thought, it sent chills down Fuu's body. Honestly, she didn't think his mind could be any more deranged than what it already was. She certainly didn't want to be around for when what was left of his sanity finally snapped. "Sheesh, Mugen don't you know how to have fun anymore?"

Fun? What part of this was supposed to be fun? When was the last time he actually had fun? Sure, beating up wannabe thugs was a little but of fun but getting drunk off his ass and getting on top of some busty broad would be more fun. Listening to her complain about being tired wasn't fun. The amount she bellowed about being hungry or dirty certainly wasn't fun either. And having her try to get the upper hand on him definitely wasn't fun. Where in the world did she get this sense of entitlement with him? _'Probably because of Jin..that sissy ass samurai..'_ Jin always seemed to favour her, giving in to her almost every need and demand. If she was tired he would make them stop to rest. If she was hungry he would somehow find something to eat. If she was cold he would give her the best spot by the fire. Clenching his sweaty palms he was feeling agitated all over again. Thinking it over, the back and forths he had with Fuu really weren't all that bad, especially in the last few days. She seemed to have more zip to her words, and she was able to keep up with him instead of just pouting. And okay...maybe he did let her sleep closer to the fire last night, and he even let her wear his haori...and he shared the futon with her. But damn it all, in no way was this actually fun for him.

"Your idea of fun and my idea of fun are way different girl."

Knowing all too well what he thought was fun she rolled her eyes. "Then the next time we get to a city just go have your fun then and I'll go have mine."

"And what the hell are you going to do huh? Eat?" A small boney elbow hit his ribs. "Ow! You bitch."

Puffing out her cheeks she held her hands behind her back like she had done absolutely nothing. "I have my own interests too you know. Despite what you might think I am a young woman."

"Psh..yea right, you still look like a dumb kid to me."

Lies. Nothing but lies.

But he had to keep telling himself that for some reason. Her change over the last three years was definitely noticeable, and it was even tempting at times- too tempting. The way she seemed to have no guard around him, especially when it came time to go to sleep. Even last night he had a certain issue because of her. _'Naive and stupid is what she is...'_

With the sun barely hanging in the sky Fuu's steps were slow and sluggish- dragging her feet on the ground and slumping her shoulders. Their path had become more tiring than she imagined, full of small hills and mounds- the repeating process of going up hill and down hill got to her. Her legs felt like wet noodles but Mugen didn't seem fazed by any of it. Why would he? The guy was a walking machine. Not that she would admit it but she knew that under his baggy clothes was a sculpted body. Well, she was only going off of assumptions- she actually hadn't seen much of his body before. Maybe she had three years ago when he tried to get comfortable with Sara in the hot spring but she was so embarrassed that she turned and hid herself. Her body swayed side to side with each lazy "step", and her tired eyes watched Mugen's back as he seemed to keep a somewhat slow pace in front of her.

"That's it. I can't walk anymore! I'm done!" Crashing down to her hands and knees, her legs continued to shake from over exertion. Her body was almost lost in the grass as it seemed to stand taller than her. If he would allow it she would be just fine with laying down in the tall grass right there and sleeping away all her fatigue. But unfortunately Mugen was never that kind. If she was lucky he wouldn't leave her behind (again).

"Come on, get up." With his hands in his pockets he nudged her ribs lightly with his foot. "We've walked way longer than this. So what's the big deal huh?"

Taking in a deep breath she looked up at him. "The big deal is all these hills. My legs feel like they're going to fall off! I'm not a machine like you."

"Is that right?" Raising an eyebrow at her he couldn't help but grin. He was wondering if he should wait for her to figure it our for herself, or if he should have some fun with it. _'Ah..to hell with it.'._ "There's a centipede crawling towards you...Ohhh, it's huge!"

Not even bothering to look, Fuu sprung up back up on her feet and ran like her life depended on it. "GET IT AWAY FROM ME!"

Stepping next to her exhausted body Mugen couldn't help but laugh. "You're so full of shit. I thought you said you couldn't walk anymore?" He honestly never saw her move so quickly before. She was like a rabbit running out from its hiding spot because it had been spotted by a predator. And in this case, it was a damn centipede- she could have just stepped on it. Why was she scared of such stupid things and yet she could run head on into real danger? A centipede won't kill you but thugs and swords certainly would.

With heavy breaths she couldn't even argue with him. She just lay on the ground with her arms out at the side, she waved her one hand to dismiss him but he just stood there looked down at her. She used up whatever energy she had left and now she really was ready to sleep.

The mountain that was far in the distance earlier didn't seem so far anymore, but they still had some travelling to do before they would reached it. At some point the hilly grasslands had some tree coverage which was good enough for Mugen. He hated the idea of being out in the open like that, the only good thing would be being able to see who was coming and from where. Being in trees had its own perks but its own problems as well, but it was what they were use to when they weren't making themselves at home in some old shack. Sitting himself against a tree Mugen was quite happy with his position and with enough time he would easily fall asleep.

"Aren't you going to make a fire?"

"No."

"But it's already getting cold!"

"Then you make one."

...

"Can I at least wear your haori again?"

"No."

"Muuuuuugen." Crawling over to him she stopped beside his thighs, gripping his shirt she shook him lightly. "It's not fair, I can't make a fire by myself. It's cold. It's dark." She slumped her head. "Muuuuugen."

"What the hell do you want me to do huh?" Running his hand over his face he let out a sound mixed with grievance and annoyance. "Do you really think building a fire here is a good idea? What your dumb fucking luck all the grass would catch fire and we'd be roasted." Putting his sword on the other side of him he crossed his arms and rested his head against the tree. Taking one deep breath he let the words escape him before he had a chance to really think about it. "If you're that cold then just stay here."

She just looked at him, unsure on what he meant. _'Stay here?'_ Raising one eyebrow higher than the other she let go of his shirt she had balled up in her fists. Was this some kind of joke? Or did she just mishear him? "Huh? What do you mean?"

"I ain't gonna spell it out for ya. Stay here, or don't. But either way don't bother me." Finally shutting his eyes, he waited for Fuu's choice. This wouldn't be the first time that they would sleep close together, just the other night they shared his futon. And quite often when the weather would take a turn for the worse the three of them (He, Fuu and Jin) would sleep in a line. Usually with Fuu in the middle so it would be easier for him or Jin to defend themselves. But Fuu usually seemed to distance herself from him, and closer to the samurai. Not that it really bothered him back then, he liked having his own space and in the mornings he would be spread out like a star anyway so there was no point in making a big deal out of it. Hell...she was always closer to Jin- stupid four eyes. Maybe the girl had feelings for him? Chicks seemed to dig the strong and silent type for some stupid reason. Hell..even she admitted that she thought Jin was handsome- not that she knew that he knew that.

* * *

 _The two men sat in the dimly lit room alone, as they somehow managed to round up enough money for another night at a Inn. Fuu was planning on taking full advantage of it since it had its own private hot spring. They barely got in the room before she swung off her bag and made her way out the door, but not before sending one sided threats if "any perverts try to take a peek"._

 _The notion of looking at her body made him roll his eyes but he didn't say anything. If he did it would just start a fight and he wanted her gone. Some peace and quiet was something he didn't get much anymore- not that he himself were very peaceful but damn she made him tired. It was all day every day with her, nonstop talking and complaining. Placing his right arm up on the window ledge, Mugen glanced over at Jin._

 _"-My point is, don't you think this is fishy?"_

 _"How so?"_

 _"For starters, what the hell are we even traveling for?"_

 _"To search for the samurai who smells of sunflowers, as I recall."_

 _"That's what I'm sayin'! I mean, she ain't told us one damn thing about who this sunflower dude is."_

 _"-Yes, that's true..."_

 _"-Not even that one time." His mind went back to when they first inquired about the sunflower samurai, and instead he got a lesson on what the hell a sunflower was. He guessed it was a flower from the damn name but that didn't stop the girl and four-eyes from bugging him. "Don't you think she gets kinda evasive when we bring up that stuff?"_

 _"Hmm.."_

 _"-And now she says that we're heading for Nagasaki!" Bringing his arm down from the ledge he rested his hand on his knee with a smack, finally turning to look the samurai dead on. "All we've got is that guy's unreliable information."_

 _"But that man was the chief merchant of the East India Company's Japan branch. I doubt that information from a man like that would be unreliable."_

 _"You think so?"_

 _"Besides, with no other information to go on, we have no other choice."_

 _"That's my point! That's what I'm sayin'! No way in hell she doesn't know anything else. She's hiding something from us!"_

 _"Hmm..."_

 _"Okay, then..." Standing up, he had his eyes on the girl's bag on the other side of the room._

 _"What are you doing?"_

 _"I'm gonna snoop around a little while she's taking her bath."_

 _Before Jin could protest, Mugen ran out of the room. The samurai sat in silence while he momentarily worried about Fuu's virtue, and the possibility of Mugen doing something despicable but surely the young girl would scream or shout if something dubious was happening._

 _Mugen ran silently without being detected- not that Fuu was ever on guard. He could have announced he was there or that he was going to go through her stuff and make a huge racket while doing so but she wouldn't do a think about it. The damn girl was embarrassed about being seen naked- it's not like she had anything to hide anyway. But apparently it was something about her dignity and virtue for marriage? Being seen naked wouldn't hurt anything or anybody but she sure seemed to think so. He could hear he humming to herself when he finally ran into the shack where Fuu left all her belongings in. He was quick to move a few folds of her clothing to find a small book. Happy with what he found, he made his way back to the room._

 _Plopping himself on his backside, Mugen was quite eager to finally get some answers to his pending questions- and maybe even find something juicy. "-Here we go.."_

 _"Hey, don't go through other people's belongings."_

 _"Don't sweat it. It's her own damn fault for not telling us anything." Turning the first page, Mugen gripped the small book with both hands and brought it close to his face._

 _"What?"_

 _"...I can't read."_

 _"Give me that." Snapping the book out of Mugen's hands, Jin sat down once again and adjusted his glasses. "It seems to be a diary."_

 _"A diary? Great, there's bound to be some secrets about that sunflower dude written in there."_ _Jin didn't seem to say anything but Mugen could see his eyes moving along the page. "Hey, read it out loud, damn it."_

 _"July 10th. Sunny. It's almost been a year since Mom died. I had always told myself that I would set out on a journey, but I never had the courage, so I've been working and living at uncle's teahouse. But the day has finally come for me to set out. I've made up my mind that starting today, I'm going to keep this diary until I find the samurai who smells of sunflowers so that I won't forget this journey. And so, I have now filled out the first page. Admittedly, the teahouse burned down, so I don't have any choice but to start my trip. Parentheses, smiley face. And the fire was caused by a couple of unbelievable guys._

 _"Heh?" Mugen looked at the samurai who also had his face scrunched with some sort of curious expression._

 _"-The first one to show up at the teahouse was a crude and vulgar guy with wild hair."_

 _"What, does she mean me?"_

 _"-The instant I saw him, I thought he was a bad person who would commit all sorts of crimes, and was the type of person that I would never want to be friends with in a million years."_

 _"Say what?!"_

 _"-But then, once I talked to him...I learned that I was right about him."_

 _"Watch it, you bitch!" Hands on both knees he leaned in closer to the written words._

 _"What are you getting angry at the diary for?"_

 _"-I'll admit that I needed help because the stupid son of the governor thought he could do whatever he wanted. But even so...Once he got started, he didn't know when to stop. I mean, he really went overboard. If I knew he was going to be like that, I would've taken my chances with the governor's son."_

 _"Why, you little..."_

 _"Just then, another man appeared. One with long hair and glasses."_

 _"She talkin' about you?"_

 _"-Unlike the first one, I thought that this new guy was kinda attractive."_

 _"Huh?" Gritting his teeth, the notion bothered Mugen for some reason. Jin's expression twicthed slightly but he tried not to make any fuss about it. Mugen knew he was maybe a bit unorthodox with his actions and maybe his appearance but he still considered himself a good looking guy. He had all of his teeth and they weren't rotting out of his mouth. All of his limbs were intact and he wasn't balding. What was wrong with him?_

* * *

Just remembering that made Mugen click his tongue again. _'I bet if it was Jin she'd stay 'ere. This is discrimination, I swear-'_ With a knock of his shoulder and the side of his bicep pressed against something he opened his eye and glanced over at her small frame.

Fuu made her way beside Mugen, her back barely against the available space of the tree behind them. Her knees were pressed to her chest and her arms wrapped around them, making herself into an upright ball. Her cheek squished against the top of her knee in an attempt at making herself comfortable, the back of her head faced Mugen. Her "up-do" was hanging low on her head and was starting to untwist.

"Your hair looks like shit..." He couldn't leave her alone, even when it came to something stupid like this. Reaching over with his poorly stitched right hand, he had enough feeling left that he was able to grip the small wooden sticks and pulled them from her hair. The long, brown silky strands unravelled down her back reminding him just how long her hair really was. It seemed like a real pain in the ass to have such long hair and Mugen never understood why girls didn't just chop it off. At the same time, long hair had it's own appeal to him- like it was begging for him to pull it like some child. It would be so easy for him to wrap his fingers in the brown locks and pull. What kind of facial expression would she make? What would she say? What sound would escape her lips? Gripping the chop sticks as hard as he could in his injured hand he couldn't feel what was tracing along the scars and threads.

"Is your hand feeling better?"

"What?" It came out harsher than he meant. But he forgot that she was actually there while lost in his own perversions.

"It doesn't hurt does it? Your hand?"

He watched as both of her small hands explored his like the night before. But instead of cleaning and tending, she was examining. Even though she was using both of her hands they still looked tiny compared to his. Her hands were small, delicate, without a single scar or scratch. Her nails were long and shiny, no longer painted pink like they always use to be. Even though his eyes saw what was happening, his hand still couldn't feel it. He couldn't feel her touch, he couldn't feel the chop sticks that he held- there was nothing.

"It's fine."

"But your fingers are ice cold Mugen!" Being mindful of his stitches, Fuu collapsed both of her hands over his fingers and pressed her lips to them. Huffing her hot breath over them.

Mugen was sure if he was able to feel anything he would just say his fingers were fine, and that she was just over reacting. "Weren't you just saying how you were cold?"

"Yea, I am, but so what? Not like you care."

"You little brat...you should worry about yourself a little more." Pulling his hand away from hers he snaked his left arm over her shoulders and brought her in close to his side. Her front was pressed against his side and her frame seemed to fit just perfectly in the nook of his arm. His hand held onto her arms firmly, keeping her in place. He looked away from her, trying to pay no attention to the expression on her face that was still more confused than anything, and trying to ignore her curves that were pressed firmly against him. Though no fault of her own, it made him even more irritable. "Don't get the wrong idea here. I just don't want to hear you bitching about being cold anymore."

"How-how does that make me a brat?" She had to admit though, even though his hand was cold the rest of him radiated heat. _'You're the one being a brat...doing all this.'_ She wasn't sure how to position herself, she couldn't relax her tense and tightened body. It was just strange, being like this against Mugen. Never in a million years did she ever think he would do something like this, heck she never even considered this an option. She'd never been embraced like this by a man before- at least not by choice. Did she even choose this? Maybe indirectly..she did sit next to him but she assumed they would stay like that. Her left hand was on his chest, trying to keep her weight off of him, but she could feel his heart beating. It seemed to be thumping hard and fast under her palm. _'Is..Mugen nervous?'_ Her large brown eyes looked up to him, his eyes were once again closed and his head rested against the tree.

"Shut your damn eyes and go to sleep." He seemed to have this special sixth sense with her, he didn't have to look in order to know she was staring at him.

"Fine!" Trying to adjust herself without bothering him, she layed her cheek against his chest and allowed her weight to press into him. "You don't have to be so mean about it."

"Kiss my ass."

"Take a bath, you stink." She couldn't help but snicker under her breath. Mugen never ceased to amaze her- but usually it was at how completely disconnected to the rest of the world he was. How he seemed to not have a care in the world and could go head first into any situation. He didn't care who they were, or what would happen after- heck, she even remembered the story of him cutting down someone with the shogun's crest. But the Mugen that she was tucked next to seemed completely different, and as nice as it all seemed it didn't feel right. In it's own way, it was kind of unfair. Mugen wasn't nice, or kind- at least not in this way. Mugen's way of being nice was letting her near the fire, or sharing some fish he caught, and even killing someone! Usually it was the killing, but still. This wasn't _Mugen_.

He couldn't deny that he smelled bad. Unlike her, he didn't get the luxury of having a bath at the Inn. The last "bath" he had a was a quick dip in a cool river, which was barely deep enough to cover his knees. All he did was submerge himself, rub a few places to try to get rid of whatever filth there might have been and then he was done. Even without touching his hair he could feel the dirt and dust it had collected. He could feel the sticky layer left on his skin by his sweat, of all the things she had a right to complain about this should be one of them. But for some reason she was quiet. It was unfair of her. Being so annoying, not telling him no, having no guard around him or anyone else at that, and growing up. God damn it...why did she grow up? Why wasn't she the same as a few years ago? Why couldn't have she been the same doe eyed, flat as a board kid? Why was she letting him do all this? He was a dirty, mangy mutt, and yet somehow there was a white rabbit was curled up next to him.

* * *

 **I know this chapter was rather anti-climatic but I actually had to split this chapter into 2 parts. I was at almost 18,000 words and I knew I needed to do something. I didn't want to just skip to 5 days later after the camp incident- I don't have it in me to skip details or anything like that! I can't help but feel that everyday between them is progress, especially since it is just the two of them and they have history. The second part should be posted in maybe 2 days?**


	8. Chapter 7 - Unfairly Jaded (Part 2 of 2)

**Okay, so it took more than two days. But that's because I erased over half of it and started over- even now I think I should wait and maybe rework some things. But thank you all for your patience, and enjoy!**

 **Chapter 7 - Unfairly Jaded (Part 2/2)**

* * *

"Okay, we meet back here at sunset okay?"

"Kay.."

"And don't get into trouble-"

"Kay..."

"Don't go killing anyone-"

"No promises."

"Mugen!"

"Fine, damn it. I'm going, I'm going."

It was about lunch time and they had already stumbled across their next destination. Apparently that mountain they had been creeping up on was Murakuni mountain, and on the other side was was the bustling trade city of Fukui. Mugen didn't want to admit it but taking the deer trail like Fuu said really saved them some time- he just wanted to climb up the mountain until they could get a good look at everything around them. But she whined and complained about how her legs would fall off in no time and that she would make him carry her- and no way was he going to do that. The small trail ended up leading them to a road that spun around the side of the mountain and eventually lead them to see the city scape.

Fuu had never been here before so she was quite excited- she knew that Fukui was just become the provincial capital. Before it was Echizen, and even know Fukui was still being rebuilt after the many wars but she heard many rumors about the great textiles, and blades that were sold and bought here. With this much business happening she knew it should be relatively easy for the both of them to get a job somewhere.

Turning around, Mugen needed to give Fuu her own little lecture. She was always making it seem like he was the cause of all of the problems but in reality he was just saving her ass. "-And girl, make sure you don't get yourself- Where'd ya go?!"

With an eager pace Fuu started making her way to the city centre, that was usually where all the main markets were. She wanted to make sure she got herself a job right away so she could have some food. Unfortunately, Mugen wasn't much of a hunter and they didn't stumble across anything other than bugs yesterday. Making her way through the streets her ears caught word that a "pop-up market" was getting set up along the harbour. Although Japan had attempted to trade with other countries, there were three that they currently allowed; China, America and the Dutch East India Trading company. If anyone else even stepped foot on Japanese soil they would be executed without any hesitation, and it was because of these strict rules that pop up markets like these were very "hush hush". But just as often as they would appear they were gone, so if you wanted some rare goods you had to act fast and if you were caught you better be prepared for the consequences.

Following the sounds and direction of the seagulls, Fuu easily found herself on the stone made harbour. Apparently more people than just her heard the word on the streets about it- people were already flooding it, making it almost impossible to make her way through. People were shouting and haggling, some pushing and shoving, bidding on items that someone had already purchased.

'Jeez..people are crazy.'

She expected it to be busy but not this busy and not this fast. She didn't even have an opportunity to find someone as they were setting up to offer to help for the day. Usually finding people just as its about to get busy is the best bet on getting a last minute temporary job. Not many people were looking for an employee just for an afternoon.

There seemed to be a large variety of goods set up along the pier. Some on the ground on blankets, other's out of the backs of wagons and quickly made tables. There were fresh fish, spices, silk materials, accessories, weapons, and some peculiar looking items that she was sure were from Europe. Their were many items made from silver, and strange "kimonos" she had never seen before. Fuu knew better than to actually call them a kimono but she had no other word for them. They seemed to consist of many different pieces and fasteners, but she didn't have time to really look because she was pushed from the front of the crowd to the middle.

"You there, Miss!"

"Huh?" A soft hand grabbed her shoulder and spun her around.

Coming face to face with the "culprit", Fuu was taken back slightly. The woman was Japanese, or at least she appeared to be but her hair and makeup were strange. Her hair seemed to have been curled somehow, the bottom half was hanging loose over her shoulders but the top half was tied up into a tight bun and her bangs were cut quite short, tickling the middle of her forehead. Her cheeks were powdered a bright pink and her lips a similar shade- she had never seen anything like it before.

"Would you like to try some new beauty products from across the seas? We have the best from not only Holland but from China as well!"

"Um..I don't really have the-"

"I promise we can get you looking super beautiful for your boyfriend! And at the best prices, guarantee!"

"N-no thank you. Really, I prefer more of the natural look-" Raising her hands in front of her, Fuu tried to be as nice as possible at letting her down. She honestly didn't want whatever made the girl look like that anywhere near her. And wearing makeup only reminded her of being stuck in the brothel a few years ago, she never went near the stuff again since then.

"Rin you're scaring the poor girl." Coming up behind the girl that was apparently named Rin, was a woman of unparalleled beauty. Her hair was like a black waterfall that fell over her shoulders, her skin looked almost porcelain, her eyes looked to be as dark as her hair but they were surrounded by the longest and fullest set of eyelashes Fuu had ever seen. Despite her amazing beauty, she wore a simple kimono but maybe that was part of her charm.

"Ah, but Mrs. Miyata told me to go sell the new products."

"Yes she did, but this girl is obviously not interested. She's not the cosmetic type like you, she's a natural beauty."

Being called a beauty by such a gorgeous being like her almost made Fuu's knees weak. She wished Mugen was here to witness this, there's no way he would ever believe her. "My my..." Placing both hands on her cheeks, Fuu couldn't help but blush.

Eyes widening, the beautiful woman grabbed Fuu's wrist, pushing her kimono sleeve far up her arm. "You! You're perfect!"

"Hah? Excuse me?"

"Would you be interested in testing a new product for us? We'll pay you of course!"

"No I couldn't possibly...wait...did you say pay?"

* * *

Swallowing the ball of nerves in her throat, Fuu held her arms out on the small table in front of her. Her kimono was pushed down to her waist, but they were kind enough to offer her some much needed chest bindings. The walls of the small room were covered by shelves, all full of different kinds of products. She couldn't read most of the labels because they were of a different language. The room had a strong aroma to it, but she couldn't pin point it but it was strong enough that it was making her head hurt. They seemed like nice enough people, and the shop was only a block away from the harbour. Her eyes watched as the girl named Rin was mixing some things in a bowl.

"S-So what is this called again?"

"Epilation! We just got the instructions yesterday and we've been trying to find someone to test it on."

'Epilation? What is that supposed to be?" Nervously laughing Fuu was still unsure on this all. "And why not try it yourself?"

"Oh because, how am I supposed to do it myself? And besides, I've been threading for years." The girl's voice was high pitch, almost like it was forced but it seemed to fit her erratic and bubbly personality. Fuu had no idea how old she actually was because of the way she had her makeup done, and her hair was still putting Fuu through a loop.

And there was another term she didn't quite understand. None of it made sense to her, but she was told the more she tried the more she would get paid. "And so why me, exactly?"

Stirring everything together in the bowl, the woman brought out a small thin stick- it reminded Fuu of a flattened spoon. "Because, you have very fine body hair and not a lot of it. So it shouldn't hurt you very much as compared to finding some hairy mongrel." Before giving Fuu any time to prepare, she spread some of the warm substance onto Fuu's left arm, then placed a small cloth on top of it. "Now, on the count of three... 1... 2" With a quick pull of the cloth, it was over.

"You said 3! not 2!"

"Did it hurt?"

"Huh..No actually." Fuu looked to her arm and saw the spot that had the hot substance was now starting to turn red, and that whatever hair was there was now gone.

"Don't worry dear, the redness should go away soon." Rin then started to repeat the process again and again on both arms. "But then again, I suppose something like this wouldn't hurt a girl like you." She said while gesturing towards Fuu's shoulder.

She had almost completely forgotten about it, since the pain went away she never paid much attention to it. She had been too preoccupied with the other marks on her body that the one that actually could have killed her slipped her memory. "Yea it seems wherever I go I just run into trouble. I seem to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

With another pull of the cloth both of Fuu's arms were red and were now hairless. "Well, you were in the right place today. You're getting luxury treatment, and you're getting paid for it at that!" Running her long fingers over Fuu's arms, Rin felt how smooth Fuu's skin was. "So soft! Your boyfriend will be so happy."

"Pshh..I don't have a boyfriend, more like a...dog?" Petting her own arms Fuu was happy with how it felt. Her skin was the smoothest it had ever been before- too bad no one would be able to see it. "So, is that all then?"

"Actually, I wouldn't mind practicing this on other parts, if you don't mind?"

"..Other parts?"

* * *

"Che..." Clicking his tongue, his eyes darted all over the place.

Everyone seemed to be avoiding him again. It was always one or the other, there was no in between for him. Why couldn't the annoying punks leave him alone and everyone else not shy away from him? It's not like he wanted to be here anymore than they wanted him- he was just doing what the girl told him. But no one wanted him, and he could really care less. Now, it wasn't that he was exactly being rejected but he wasn't about to go grovel or go from place to place asking for a job. He could see it in everyone's eyes as he approached or walked by- they wanted nothing to do with him.

 _"Go get a job!"_

"You go get a job you bitch." Kicking a stone in front of him, it tapped down the stone set of stairs in front of him. He watched it, as it "tik tik-ed" against the stairs until it eventually rolled and came to a stop at the bottom. Why was he doing what she said? She was the one that wanted to stay at another hotel. Maybe food would be nice but there were other ways of getting money. Skipping the steps of the staircase, Mugen jumped from the top to the bottom. The sound of his steel plated getas caused the attention of those nearby to look at him, only to turn away quickly.

The salty breeze rustled his already wild hair, and the seagulls sang a familiar song. Taking a deep breath in through his nose, his senses tingled. Even after all these years his body had the same reaction whenever he was near the sea. It was like it was imbedded into his bones.

For years he yearned to be on the sea, to get as far away as he could from the living hell of the island. He wanted to get as far as he possibly could from there, and to never look back. Burning that village down to the ground was supposed to be his "farewell" and "fuck you" to that hell on earth. Whether he ended up in Japan or somewhere else he didn't give a shit, he had plans to go alone on a raft or whatever he could find but Mukuro found him first. It was the first time that Mugen ever found someone with the same eyes as him, dead, dejected, and completely void of everything except anger. Through the flames that Mugen set that night on the Island, he saw someone standing there, waiting for him. Why didn't Mugen cut him down like everyone else that night? He very easily could have, but the bastard stopped him with only a small dagger and a revolver. Perhaps it was because Mugen saw the familiar eyes which told him it wouldn't be as easy as he thought. He honestly had nothing to lose, and the sea would always be there for him, to one day set sail and to leave everything behind him.

At first it was fun, really fun. Mukuro managed to get his hands on a large ship, and they would go pillage whatever coastal villages they could. The "rewards" would always be the same, a large sum of money that was "split" amongst them all (though most of it always went to Mukuro and locked away), maybe some new weapons and of course countless broads who against their will would entertain each and every single one of them. After each pillage they would make their way back to the hellish Island from which they came- no law enforcement would dare step foot there. After all, there were no laws, it was _theirs_ to rule. It was easy, really easy, but Mukuro seemed to have his sights on bigger and better things. It wasn't long until he started planning taking over shipment vessels, and Mugen was naive enought to follow along with it all.

Even though the two of them shared similar childhoods, and their eyes were mirror images of one another- something even darker lurked in Mukuro. The way the sick son of a bitch looked at his own sister, the way he would linger his hands on her, and the way he would shoot one of their own without reason just for the hell of it didn't sit right with him. Now Mugen never claimed to be a saint, or a "bringer of justice" but killing just because you can lost its appeal to him. It was one thing to kill if they had something you wanted, or if they were in your way but Mukuro would point his revolver and shoot just because he could. Who was to say who would be next? And when? Even his own sister Kohza wanted to get away from the creep, and for good reasons.

Something kept her by his side, maybe he threatened her, or blackmailed her, or she found some kind of solace in being part of his gang. She had the unfortunate luck of being born a woman on the Island, most likely born out of rape. Staying there by herself would have eventually resulted in the same thing, or her death. Perhaps she was willing to risk it happening by Mukuro rather than some random guy jumping her. She picked the easiest path for herself, just like Mugen did.

When his body first hit the bone chilling water the night they raided the sugar vessel, Mugen thought he was done for. He thought he would be washed away by the very sea that he thought would take him away. In a sense, the sea did take him, it took him to the shores of Japan, away from the Islands, and away from Mukuro. Mugen very easily could have made his way back there, to extract his revenge, and maybe take over the gang at he finally had his opportunity to cut all ties with the island and those who came from it. The only reminder would be the bands tattooed on his body. Even if the tattoos were put there before he officially committed any crimes, they were forced upon his body once he hit a certain age only because of where he was born and who he was born from. From the very second he was born, it was decided who he was and who he would become. The blue bands would be his only reminder, and maybe one day he would go back, and when he did he would be sure to find Mukuro.

But in the end, Kohza was Mukuro's ending- the tricky little bitch used him, and eventually convinced Jin to kill him. Mugen didn't blame Jin for what he did, but damn it all, he really wanted to be the one to end Mukuro- especially after he fell for the same trick twice. When the bombs on the ship went off, so did Mugen's mind. There was nothing but a vast empty whiteness, where the crow men were leading him to the other side. He probably would've went along with it but he heard someone calling for him. For the first time, someone was reaching, calling, pleading, and crying for _him_. So he couldn't just leave...he was no one worth crying over but yet she was, and he wanted to make it stop. Maybe if he could have walked away with some of that money on the ship it would have been worth it all.

Scratching his dusty, dirty scalp Mugen groaned. He was getting all...what did Jin call it again? Centimeter? Whatever that feeling was that chicks were supposed to get, Mugen was sure he was getting it too.

"Hehe, hey man you got it right?"

"Damn right I did. Like taking candy from a baby."

The familiar jingle caught Mugen's attention. Two guys about his age were snickering and talking like they were some big shots. One tossed a small coin sack up and down while they turned down some small alley. With his hands in his pockets, Mugen spun on his heel and followed the two guys.

"How much do we have left?"

"Just a few ounces, boss will be happy that's for sure."

Hand reaching over onto the handle of his blade, Mugen nonchalantly leaned in close to the men to see what they were fumbling with in their hands. "Oh? What do we have here huh?"

Starling the two men, a coin purse and small thin package fell onto the ground. Some coins fell onto the ground, clanging on each other.

"Whoa, what the hell man?!"

"Who do you think you are, huh?!"

One man took a step back and the other bent down and started to collect the fallen money and packages.

"Hah? I just happened to see ya had something interesting is all.." Mugen arched an eyebrow, curious about what was exactly in them, and who these two goons were supposed to be.

Smiling the two guys crossed their arms, they suddenly got extremely smug. "This stuff isn't cheap you know. It's the real deal."

"-80 mon per ounce."

Okay, now Mugen really was confused. Did these two idiots not realize he was talking about their money? And what the hell was an ounce anyway? "Sure...I'll take some."

"Money up front." One man held out his hand, palm up, waiting for Mugen to drop whatever money he had.

Smirking, Mugen couldn't have said it better himself. "That's exactly what I was thinking." In a flash, Mugen slammed one man's head against the stone wall, and he used the dull side of his blade to knock out the other. Their bodies fell on top of one another as Mugen slid his blade back into his sheath. He made sure to pick up every last coin that fell, and even pulled out the coin pouches that were tucked away in their clothing. _'You do things your way girl, and I'll do things my way.'_. He was quite surprised at how much these two had on them, whatever they had been trying to sell they must have sold a lot to have this much cash. While rummaging through their personals, Mugen came across the small purple pouch that had fallen earlier. Picking it up, he knew right away that there wasn't any money in it. Whatever it was it shifted like sand or dirt. Opening it up, Mugen looked inside. "Huh, what the hell is this?" Kneeling next to the one man that was still groaning from having his head smashed against the wall, Mugen nudged him. "Hey, you, what the fuck is this stuff supposed to be?"

"P-Please give us back everything! Our boss will kill us if you don't." The man sniffled as blood ran from his temple.

"And why the hell would I care if you die? If ya want I could do you a favour and just end ya right here." Sticking his finger in the pouch, Mugen played with the texture. Bringing it out again he sniffed his finger that had a light white coating on it. It left his nose irritated and itchy, but it also smelled sweet. Sweet and familiar. "I'll only ask again, if ya don't answer I might as well cut out your tongue since you ain't gonna be using it. Now..what the fuck is this stuff?"

"It's opium."

Dropping the purple pouch on the man's face, most of it spilled out.

 _'Opium, it's fucking opium.'_ How could he forget that smell? He spent an entire day breaking the buds and extracting the brown shit out of them. This was the stuff that got Fuu into the shit show she was running away from, so why the hell was he running into it all the way out here in Fukui? It must be some stupid, freaky coincidence. Slapping his hand over the man's mouth he stopped the protesting because of the wasted product. "Where the hell did you get this stuff? And don't be stupid about it." He removed his hand from the man's mouth.

"I-I can't tell you that!"

Biting his lip, Mugen realized it was a stupid request. He should just leave it alone, let the two scumbags go-or he could kill them. But if he did that then there really would be no chance of getting the answers he wanted. He smacked the man's face a couple times, not enough to hurt him, but hard enough that his hand stung a little bit. "Get outta my sight now."

"H-Hai!" In a scramble, the man got to his knees and and dashed back out onto the street, pushing people out of his way. He was yelling something but Mugen couldn't quite make it out. He didn't even look back at his still passed out friend.

Clicking his tongue, Mugen grabbed the purple pouch and its spilled contents and dumped the last of it on the other man. With his hands back in his pockets, Mugen walked out onto the street, following the trail of pushed people and spilled goods.

* * *

"See that wasn't so bad was it?" Smiling brightly, Rin collected the used cloths that had the now hardened "wax" and hairs on them. She hummed a happy song as the cloths were collected in a small basket. "Now we can confidently offer this to customers!"

"I'm glad to be of service." Fuu tried to smile but she was exhausted. She didn't know there was so many poses and positions needed for something like this, and she wasn't ready for the emotional roller coaster she went on. Getting her arms done was one thing but she couldn't refuse the money they offered for the "other parts". It took a little convincing but before she knew it her legs were getting done and Rin continued higher and higher. The air touched skin that hadn't directly felt it since she hit puberty, just thinking about it made her face feel hot. Parts of her felt very sensitive, but the pain she initially felt was already gone, but she was sure we was going to curse like Mugen.

"So..are you here in Fukui alone? It's dangerous for a young girl to be going around like that, and it looks like you..Ah..I mean..just..I saw.." Rin's voice trailed off, not sure how to say what she wanted.

Nodding, Fuu knew what she was getting at. Just a few days ago Fuu was crying about the very things Rin was concerned about. She hadn't looked at herself since her bath at the Inn, and she didn't really have the time to think about it all since then either. "I'm here with a friend. So there's no need to worry." Rolling up one of her sleeves, Fuu looked at her arm. The skin was no longer red and her skin never looked so soft and radiant. It was too bad she had no one to show- maybe she could go to a hot spring and show off to other female guests. _'Ugh...you live a sad, sad life Fuu...'_. Was her self esteem so low that she desired to show off to a bunch of strangers to get some sort of satisfaction? Screw it! She would make Mugen feel how amazing her skin was.

 _"-you go have your fun, and I'll have mine."_

 _'Ahhh...right..Mugen will probably be gone as soon as we find a place to stay.'_

"Right, so if you go out front, Hinata will pay you."

"Okay perfect, thank you so much Rin." Standing up, Fuu slid open the door.

"But! If you'd like, you can stay here. It's slow today anyways and I have time on my hands." Fixing her short fringe, Rin offered Fuu a comforting smile. "I think you deserve some pampering..."

"Thank you Rin but, there's no need. It would just go to waste anyway." It was true, any pampering she received would just go unnoticed and they would probably be leaving tomorrow anyways. Getting her hair removed was more than enough excitement for Fuu, and all she really wanted to do at this point was get paid so she could go eat.

"Is your friend a guy?"

"Well, yea-"

"Don't you want to enhance your beauty for him?"

"No, not for Mug-"

"Don't you want to show him how feminine you really are?"

"N...maybe?" The idea intrigued her. When they first travelled together, Mugen made countless remarks about her lack of sex appeal. He even made sure to point out to her the girls/women that did have the desired traits. Usually they had bright red lips, a large exposed chest and hips that seemed to sway side to side. Mugen was stupid enough to eat that kind of stuff up. He never considered that the red could easily wipe away, or that extra effort was put into walking that way to make men mesmerized. If she really wanted too it wouldn't be that hard to expose her cleavage, sway her hips a little more and to make her lips the same shade of red. However, she had no desire to do that because Mugen wasn't her type. He was too wild, rude, and unkempt. Years ago she would have fought with every ounce of her being to get him to recognize that she had sex appeal. Not because she lusted after him but when you're constantly told you can't do something or you're "delusional", it makes you that much more eager to prove them wrong.

So what kind of man was she attracted too?

She never really put much thought into it before. She like a handsome face of course, with a nice clean smile, and a good sense of humor. Working in a teahouse she had definitely come across men hitting on her or asking her out but she never accepted. It wasn't to say that they were all ugly, but they weren't that good looking either. But they never bothered to ask her name, or anything else. It was always some lame line and an offer to get something to drink, to which she would roll her eyes because they were already at a teahouse. Sure, she knew one day maybe she would want to have kids but it was hard for her to imagine that for herself. After travelling with Jin and Mugen the first time everything else seemed so mundane and monotonous, it was hard to accept that teahouse work was her life once again. Even the costumers faces seemed to blur into each other, which made it hard for her to imagine being with any of them. A basic simple life wasn't something she could see herself doing anymore. She needed some excitement and something to make each day different. When was the last time she was actually attracted to someone?

* * *

 _Peeking around the corner, Fuu watched for him. She was sure she would run into him again, this was the direction in which he ran when he stole her coin purse. It wasn't a huge place, so unless he had some hideout or secret routes he would eventually have to pass by. With a surprised gasp, she hid herself in the alley again. He seemed to be mentally preoccupied with something as he shuffled by._

 _"Hey, you!" Running out behind him, she quickly caught up._

 _"Huh?"_

 _"Do you remember who I am?"_

 _"-Who are you?"_

 _"The girl whose wallet you stole!" With widened eyes she couldn't believe it. It happened yesterday! Just how many people did this guy steal from in a day? She could easily read his face as he seemed to recall bumping into her in front of the food stand yesterday, successfully pulling her wallet out from her obi._

 _He turned to run, but Fuu quickly grabbed his wrist with both hands and stopped him._

 _"You can't get away from me."_

 _"Let go of me!" He pulled his arm, but she didn't let go._

 _"-The hell I will!" She pulled on his arm with even more force, she was going to get her money back from him one way or another._

 _"You bitch!"_

 _It was within mere moments that she and the criminal were surrounded by some men. She didn't know why but she didn't care, it wasn't any of her business and it's not like they were there for her. They exchanged some words and before she knew it, she was getting dragged along. Maybe it was because she gave that pig nosed guy a piece of her mind, and also she shouted at the top of her lungs. Some little man with a dagger wasn't going to get in her way of getting her money back. At this point she had been threatened so many times that she didn't even hesitate when he told her to mind her own business._

 _His fingers easily wrapped around her tiny wrist and although his grip was tight it didn't hurt. They turned a few corners and the local law enforcement was running after them, and of course he couldn't stop for them. He was a pickpocket, he couldn'ted just say "Hey, some guy was threatening me to return something I stole from him"._

 _Fuu was spun in front of him and soon a knife was pressed to her neck. She wasn't expecting it, her heart began to race with fear for her life, but it was soon washed away when she remembered his mother. He was only doing what he was doing for the sake of his mother, he wasn't a bad buy, he just had certain circumstances that caused him to do what he did._

 _"Stay away! If you come any closer, I'll slit her throat!"_

 _"Hey, what do you think you're doing?"_

 _Slowly, Fuu was being backed up into a yard as a crowd seemed to be accumulating to see what was happening. The law enforcement was at a loss, they wanted to catch him but they didn't want to risk her life. They yelled at him to surrender peacefully but he refused. Closing the two of them in a building, Shinsuke jammed the door shut so no one would be able to enter._

 _"Do you hear me?! If you come near me, I'm really gonna kill this girl!"_

 _His grip on her loosened, and she probably could have slipped away right there but the sound of something dripping on the ground made her decide to stay. He was bleeding, and looking at the amount of blood that was already collected on the ground, he was cut deep._

 _"Hey, you're bleeding!"_

 _"Shut your mouth."_

 _"But..."_

 _"It's no big deal!" Pushing her up the stairs, Shinsuke lead Fuu to the top floor, where they could see everyone and everything happening around them._

 _Looking out the large window, a bigger crowd was gathered than what she had expected. 'Do people really have nothing better to do than to just stand around watching? Sheesh, get a hobby...'_ _The sun was already setting and things still didn't seem to be progressing at all. Blood was smeared on the staircase and on the floor. "Are you in pain?"_

 _He was sitting off to the side, trying to keep his cut arm elevated on his knee. "It's nothing."_

 _"That look on your face says otherwise."_

 _"Don't you get it? If I have to, I'm gonna kill you."_

 _Rolling up her sleeve, Fuu ripped a piece of her white underlay, no one would see the ripped sleeve so there was no harm in helping. He didn't seem to oppose her tending to his arm, although it was only temporary it was better than nothing. Now that things were quiet between them she finally got a good look at his face. He tried looking away from her but it didn't stop her from taking a peek here and there while wrapping the cloth around his arm. His skin had been kissed by the sun, and it was noticeably darker than her own- but not darker than Mugen's. His face was quite handsome, and the way he acted like a bad boy when in reality he was doing all of this for his mother was absolutely adorable. She couldn't help but wonder when he first started living this kind of life, what happened to his father and if he was ever going to quit._

* * *

Just thinking about that day still made her uneasy. When he looked at her as he was leaving through the window it made her heart skip a beat. He looked driectly at her, with that appreciative look in his eyes and the sunset behind him. _'If I ever see you again, I'll repay you for what you did today. So... don't forget about me, okay?'_ There was no way she could forget about him, even if he did steal their money and held her hostage, she would only remember him for the kind hearted guy who only wanted to take care of his mother.

"Then it's settled!" Grabbing Fuu by the wrist Rin lead her to the room that was set up directly across from the one they were in.

Looking at it, Fuu figured at one point this building must have been a restaurant at some point. The room had the set up of what would have been a basic kitchen: high counters, a multitude of shelves and cabinets and the distinct scent of smoke and cooking oil still barely hung in the air. It was hard to pick up because there was an almost overwhelming floral scent that clouded most of her nose but there as no tricking her. She had worked as a waitress for years and there was no way she would ever be able to forget the scent that would often cling to her clothing at the end of everyday.

"Won't you get in trouble for bringing me back here? I can't pay for any of this."

"Oh please, don't even worry about it. Hinata and Ms. Miyata won't mind-" Forcefully making Fuu sit down on a stool, Rin pulled the chop sticks from her hair. "-And besides, this a beauty parlor, I can't let someone leave looking like this. It might hurt our reputation."

 _'Oh..ouch...I don't look that bad, do I?'_ Puffing out her cheeks, Fuu slowly let the air out, deflating her face. "Thank you...Rin-chan." Maybe pampering would be so bad after all. Who knows, she might even run into some young stud on her way to meet up with Mugen.

Shivers went down her body as a comb started making its way through her hair. There were a few knots here and there which pulled on her scalp but she didn't mind. When she was young her hair was often knotted in multiple places from her rolling around outside and playing without restraint. Her mother would lecture her and would then brush her hair without any mercy. For the times it wasn't full of knots, it was always relaxing, especially when someone else did it for her.

"Ah what's that?"

Rin stopped brushing her hair and she was mixing some things in a small bamboo bowl on the counter. "It cleans the hair without having to wash it. Although, it's only temporary and you will have to make sure you wash your hair in the next day or so." Nodding, Fuu watched as the pale powder was carefully spooned into the bowl and then a few drops of what looked to be oil was added. Using a brush, Rin started applying it to Fuu's scalp and then combed it through to the ends of her hair.

The sweet scent seemed to be stronger, and she was no longer able to smell the cooking oil or smoke. "It smells amazing." Fuu never had the luxury of using anything like perfume before, even if this technically wasn't perfume it smelled like it. The scent wasn't overpowering, it was like walking past a blooming bud. Faint, yet a treat to the nose.

"Hai, Ms. Miyata crushes hydrangeas and leaves seals them in a vase of oil for weeks before we use it." Skipping in front of Fuu, Rin rested her hands on her knees before bending down to meet Fuu's eyes. "Now, Fuu-chan, are you ready to become the most beautiful girl in Fukui?"

* * *

"Oi...have you seen a guy about this tall? Blood on his face? Ugly as all hell?" Holding up his hand to be level with his ear, another person refused to answer him as they shuffled away. "It's rude to ignore people, jack ass..."

After a few blocks Mugen lost view of the fleeing man and eventually there was no trace of him left. _'Damn it..'_ He should have just killed him, or broke a few of his bones until he told him what he wanted to know. _'This is all her fucking fault. Telling me not to kill anyone. Who the hell does she think she is? Does she not know who I am?! Seriously...'_ Casually, Mugen grabbed a peach from a store front as he walked on by. He took a big bite out of it just as someone yelled at him. Turning to look over his shoulder, some juice ran down his chin and the old shop keep slowly looked down to the ground and eventually went back about his business. Now what should he do? He had been walking around for hours until he ran into those punks, and obviously there would be no finding him now. Maybe he should just go back to the waiting spot for Fuu to get back.

 _'Wait...maybe that other guy..'_

Turning around, Mugen picked up speed and because everyone was avoiding him he didn't have to do anything except venture straight. People got out of his way without him having to hesitate, and he even grabbed another peach from the stand. They were unbelievably sweet and seemed to satisfy some of his hunger but he really couldn't wait to get his hands on some meat. With his cheeks stuffed with unchewed pieces of peach, he turned into the alley where he was sure he had his run in with the two men. He swallowed everything in one large lump.

"What the fuck?..." He had the right alley alright, but the man he left unwounded was now laying in a pool of his own blood. His face cut beyond recognition and his innards were spewing out from his side. The blood was beginning to spread towards Mugen's feet, and the smell made Mugen's stomach twist. He was gone for maybe 20 minutes tops. This must have just happened, hell, he might have walked right by the person that did this. But who? Was someone watching them? Or was there some sick bastard out there that got their rocks off from stuff like this that just happened to walk by at the right time? _'Well..whatever happened, I need to get the hell way from here.'_

"KYAAA OFFICER! SOMEONE, HELP!"

His head snapped up, some woman was clutching her child to her chest and looked away with frightened eyes. A few other's gathered around her to look down the alley at Mugen and the brutal scene.

"There was a murder!"

"Hey, this ain't what it looks like." He dropping the peach pit, he took a few steps back. _'The girl's bad fucking luck is rubbing off on me.'_

With the sound of the whistle, a officer turned into the alley. Bringing his foot back, Mugen kicked the peach pit much like a rock. The pit hit the officer on the forhead, making him fall backwards, and Mugen made a mad dash in the other direction. There was no point in trying to tell them what happened, that he just found the guy like that, and that he didn't do it. They would never believe him, hell even if he told Fuu he didn't do it she would probably question him. He left a cloud of dust behind him as he ran, and the sounds of the whistles and voices of the law enforcements still seemed to follow close behind. They did have the home field advantage after all. All he could do was veer right, and left or continue on straight. He didn't know where the hell he was going or where he would end up.

"Ah, shit!"

A street peddler was guiding his mule out from an alley, cutting right in front of Mugen. The mule had sacks, boxes and rolls of material strapped all over it and Mugen couldn't see what or who was on the other side. With a quick hop and raising his arms, Mugen sprung up, twisting his body forward so his feet were above his head, he planted both hands firmly on the mule's loaded back and sprung himself over on the other side. With his feet touching the ground he continued on his path.

"STOP OR ELSE WE'LL SHOOT!" Coming at him from in front, a group of law enforcement perched down on their knees with riffles pointed and ready.

"LIKE HELL I WILL!" This wasn't his first time with a run in like this. He didn't slow down, and the line up of men and their guns got closer and closer until they split at the middle, making a clear path for Mugen.

"What are you guys doing?! Aren't you men?! SHOOT! SHOOT NOW!"

With a round of ear rattling _**bangs** , _holes appeared in things all around Mugen. A bag of rice started to empty, hitting the ground like a hourglass that was tipped upside down, and to his left a vase on display shattered into countless pieces.

"IF YOU'RE GONNA STOP ME, YA GOTTA TRY HARDER THAN THAT!" Jumping once again, Mugen managed to scale another wall, putting more of a distance between himself and his pursuers. He didn't bother to look behind him, he just kept on going until the whistles and shouting were drowned out of his ears.

* * *

"Rin, are you almost done?" Sliding open the door, the ethereal beauty came in the room. "Oh..wow."

Rin couldn't help but bring as she pulled the small brush away from Fuu's lips. "I'd say so. It didn't take much but I'd say she can leave her proudly and with her head held high."

"Can I see?" Fuu fidgeted with her hands and was trying to hide the excitement in her voice. She didn't want this done at first but as soon as Rin showed her the products and explained what she was going to do, Fuu couldn't help but be eager for the results. The last time Fuu had makeup on her face was at the brothel and it felt heavy on her face but whatever Rin had used was light, like there was nothing at all.

"Hai! Of course you can!" Grabbing a small hand held mirror, Rin gave it to Fuu. "I'll be right back, I'm going to submit the epilation report to and I'll bring your pay back with me." Hooking arms with the beauty, Rin guided them both away, leaving Fuu alone with her reflection.

Holding the mirror in her hands, Fuu wouldn't help but stare at herself. Although the makeup was light, she looked like herself but yet at the same time she never looked so different. The apples of her cheeks were powdered with the lightest shade of rogue, giving her a permanent blush. But it didn't overwhelm the pale colour of her skin. It was a miracle that she hadn't tanned during her travels these last few weeks. Her brows seemed to be combed smooth and filled in slightly. Closing one eye, Fuu looked at the lid. There was a small sweep of brown in the crease of her eye, adding depth and definition to the shape of her eyes. And just like in a ukiyo-e painting, her eyes were lined with fine black lines, going all the way along her top lash line and a third of the way on the bottom lash line. Lightly biting her bottom lip, Fuu quickly stopped because of the product that adorned them. Her lips weren't as brightly painted as Rin's but they were shiny and seemed to have a pink on them that reminded her of spring. Fluffing her hair with her fingers, it never felt so silky smooth in her entire life. Bringing a strand to her nose, it still smelled like oils that Rin used.

"Ah, absolutely stunning!" Slender fingers, with long red nails at the end grabbed Fuu's chin and brought her attention up. It was a middle aged woman, her hair was elaborately done and she had a large gold encrusted comb keeping it all together. Her face was powdered white, with a red gloss on her lips, and the painted on beauty mark at the corner of her mouth didn't fool Fuu. "I must say, absolutely flawless." Letting go of Fuu's chin the woman snapped her fingers. "That's it! Just wait here."

Blinking, Fuu watched as the woman left and Rin came back in.

"Who was that?"

"Oh, that was Ms. Miyata. Here-" Rin handed Fuu a heavy pouch of coins.

Opening it up, Fuu's eyes almost popped out of her head. "This is too much money! I can't accept all of this."

"Then, you'd be willing to do a bit more work then?" Ms. Miyata came back in with a small stack of papers in her arms. "Just for today. I can't waste a face like yours. Just go and hand out some flyers, show all the girls and women of Fukui what this parlor can do!"

Taking the stack of papers from Ms. Miyata, Fuu flipped the edges, trying to get an idea on just how many there were. "Sure, it's the least I can do after how generous you all were."

"HINATA!"

Jumping back, Fuu clenched the papers in both hands as 's shrill voice shrieked to the other room.

"TAKE OF THAT GET UP AND ESCORT HER!"

"Yes mother!"

 _'A man's voice? But who?'_ Fuu couldn't help but rub her lips together, the smooth texture of the cosmetics made them feel like silk.

"Word on the street is that there's some mad man is running around Fukui. The police are in a frenzy, apparently someone was killed in an alley. Imagine that! In broad daylight!" Hands on her waist, shook her head. "Just you wait, they'll be blaming the foreigners in no time. It's a shame really.."

"Well what do you expect? Shady stuff is happening all the time here." Rin popped her lips, her voice was trailing off as she seemed bored. "This is nothing new.."

"Yes but they're saying they don't think he's from here! He ran at the police with their guns like a wild animal."

"Now you two, you're going to scare her." Stepping beside was an undeniably handsome man. Handsome might have been the wrong word, he was beautiful. It should be a crime for a man to look like that, he easily put Fuu's pampered look to shame. His hair was short, not even long enough to run fingers through it, but his face was like it was straight out of a painting. His gentle dark eyes, long lashes that were like wings of a butterfly.

 _'Wait...didn't they call for Hinata...that would mean.'_

Pointing at the man, Fuu's mouth hung open. "That means you're her! I mean, that you're the one that brought me here with Rin!"

"Oh Fuu, this is my son Hinata. Isn't it such a shame?" grabbed Hinata's cheeks and squished them, forcing his lips to press out like a fish. "He was born with such a beautiful face I was sure he was meant to be a girl."

"Mother, please." Pulling himself from his mother's grasp, he grabbed onto Fuu and the papers. "Let's go before it gets too dark out."

The two of them walked the streets, Fuu handed out a paper to women who would look her way, she even made sure to show off her soft hairless arms. This caught the attention of most who couldn't believe that such a thing was available for women like them. Fuu tried her best to explain the products and procedure the best she could but she didn't know any of the terminology so that was when Hinata would step in. Fuu could see it on the the women's faces whenever he talked, their knees got weaker and their faces flushed. Whether they were mesmerized by his feminine beauty or by his smile she didn't know but he had a way of drawing people in.

"Jeez...why didn't your mother just send you to do this instead of me?" Fuu pouted as she looked for some more people to hand out flyers to. She made a mental note to go to the meeting spot soon, the sun was barely starting to set.

"She has before. It usually goes alright but I guess my disguise as a woman is a little too convincing, and I end up pulling off my wig to scare off some perverts." With a deep inhale, Hinata sighed. "And Rin usually just frightens people away. She's a little too into the Holland trends, and I don't think Japan is quite ready for that yet."

Nodding, Fuu knew what he meant. Rin had scared her at first too, and if it wasn't for Hinata, she never would have went along with it all. "So why do you dress as a woman anyway?"

Scratching the back of his head, Hinata glanced at Fuu. "It's to help my mother, and she dressed me as a girl until I turned 13. So It's not like it's anything new."

"What!? That's ridiculous. Why didn't you stop her?"

"Well, because it saved me from a lot of hardships, no one ever questioned my gender, I was never recruited into any gangs or anything like that. It also helped me get a job as a regular Kabuki performer- when I'm not helping mother that is."

"A Kabuki performer? Wow That's impressive Hinata!" Turning to look at him, he was suddenly gone. "Hinata?" Turning in circles a few times she finally caught him. He was inquisitively looking at a display of different accessories. Running up beside him she looked at the one that seemed to have his attention. It was a a beautiful hair stick, the body was a white lacquer, and it was two pronged. The top of it was a collection of white cherry blossoms with a light pink around the center of each bloom, from the side of the flowers was a small gold chain with a white bead at the end. "It's beautiful, I think it would suite you."

"Yea, I've been looking for one with these colours...but I was hoping for a peony, not hydrangeas" Looking at the seller behind the stand, Hinata pointed at the hair stick in question. "May I?" With a nod of approval from the stand owner, Hinata picked it up and started examining it from all angles. He felt the weight in his hand and even inspected the small chain.

"What's a peony?"

"A type of flower, it's...large, and has lots of layered petals. It's really beautiful."

"I might not know what a peony is, but I think those hydrangeas are nice. It's beautiful but it isn't too much that it would take away from your face. Sir, may I?" Grabbing a mirror on the other side of the display, Fuu held it up for Hinata. "Hold it up next to your head and just imagine it in your wig. Beautiful right?"

Doing what Fuu said, he couldn't help but look at her instead of the mirror. "Beautiful doesn't even begin to describe it."

Smiling brightly, Fuu set the mirror back down and picked up the papers once again. "I told you. People should really listen to me more."

"What about you Fuu, isn't there one you like?"

"Huh? Oh, no. There's no point. I had some years ago but I ended up breaking them. I just use chopsticks now." Tucking a her hair behind her ear she let her eyes roam over the hair sticks. There were plenty to choose from but none of them really jumped out at her. Each one was beautiful in its own way but she didn't need something fancy, especially since she was just walking around or running for her life. Having something so beautiful would be like she was lying to herself, like she was trying to pretend she was someone else. Her life wasn't about these types of luxuries, or any luxuries at that.

"Hmm..earlier said you preferred the more natural look right? Then how about this one?" Standing behind Fuu, Hinata twisted her hair up and stuck a stick in it, keeping it firmly in place. "Now take a look."

Picking up the mirror again, Fuu held it up and turned her head slightly. With such little effort Hinata was able to do her hair up beautifully and with only one stick. She always needed to use two when she would do it, and it never looked this good. The stick that he picked out was very simple, it was bronze in colour with only a beaded strand dangling from the end of it. The beads alternated between an opaque white and a soft pink, and at the end was a single pink cherry blossom flower.

"You have great taste Hinata. Your mom is right, it's a shame you're not a girl." Shaking her head as she laughed, she watched the beaded chain and cherry blossom bounce with her movement. It had been so long since she had proper hair sticks she almost forgot what it felt and looked like. Biting her bottom lip, she turned her head again, taking another look at it in the mirror. The reflected light made her squint her eyes, changing the angle to get a better look. It was the sunset. Fuu loved the bright blue skies but the setting sun was something special. It was the sun's final breath, of the day. Like a candle about to burn out, the colours flickered across the sky in an attempt to stay alive. Maybe it was because she was always partial to the colours of the sunsetting. Yellow, like the sunflowers. Orange like the peaches her mother would share with her, and then red. Why was red so important to her again? The outstretched hues of orange, yellow and red reflected in her eyes as she thought of it.

Noticing where her eyes were in the reflection, Hinata turned to look at the sunset. "It's so pretty it's almost unfair isn't it?"

"Yea, it's really pretty...especially the red." Setting down the mirror Fuu went to pull the hair stick out of her hair but Hinata's large, yet delicate hand stopped her.

"Leave it." It was like Hinata was suddenly closer to her. His skin was smoother than her own, but it held hers firmly.

"What the hell are you doing?"

A tall figure shadowed over Fuu and the unfamiliar face, scowling down at them. His brows knit, pushing his jaw out he clicked his tongue. She wasn't at the meeting place so we went looking for her which was difficult since the police were looking for him. He had to weave his way around the alleys, walk behind carts and stalls trying to hide himself. And what was she doing of all things? She was on a god damn date.

"Mugen-" Pulling her hand out from Hinata's she finally turned to fully face him. "-I was just finishing off some work, then I was going to go to the meeting spot."

"What kind of work is this supposed to fucking be huh?"

"I'm handing out flyers for your information!" She shook the remaining flyers in his face, crinkling under the pressure of her fingers.

Pulling the papers from her, Mugen tossed them over his shoulder. They fluttered and drifted down to the ground. "There, now you're done."

"Mugen, you can't just do that!"

"Is that right? Well I think I just did. Now let's get the hell outta here."

Hinata stood there, watching the back and forth not sure if he should say something or walk away. When he first saw the man in red walk up, he wanted to run as far away from his as possible. His instincts were telling him to not get involved with this man, that he was nothing but trouble. The scars on his face, and his blue banded tattoos were all he needed to see. He swallowed a lump in his throat and took a step away from the bickering duo.

"I'm not saying it again-" Mugen finally turned towards the unfamiliar male, and like an imposing predator, he needed to protect what was his. Draping his arm over Fuu's shoulders he tucked her back into the form of his body like he did the night before. With more force than necessary, Mugen stuck out his other arm, and pointed his middle finger up into the air. Showing his discontent to the male without having to directly say anything to him. "It's time to go- now." With his left arm over her shoulders, he grabbed the wrist that was closest, spinning her as he turned away to leave.

"Ah, wait, ouch...Mugen!" With very little effort, she attempted to pull out of Mugen's grasp. There was no budging him, even if she used all of her strength she doubted she would be able to break free. Her short legs attempted to keep up with Mugen's long strides but his fast pace walk was like a jog for her. Looking over her shoulder, she looked at the very confused and concerned Hinata. "Thank you for everything Hinata" Please say goodbye to Rin and your mother for me!" Wincing her head snapped back at Mugen has his vice like grip only seemed to tighten. "Mugen that hurts."

Mugen didn't bother to answer her. He didn't even bother to push away the people walking in their path, he just plowed right through them which left Fuu apologizing she rushed by. Normally he would cuss or mutter something at the strangers as if it was their fault they got knocked down, but he didn't. He weaved them through alleys, and eventually back onto the mountain path that led them into the city.

"MUGEN I SAID THAT HURTS!"

"God damn it-" Swinging his arm around he tossed Fuu against the side of the still towering mountain. Her back hit the "wall" made of the rising earth, knocking some air out of her lungs and unraveling her hair. Stepping forward, Mugen could feel something crack under his geta, but that was of no concern for him. "-what the hell were ya doing huh?!"

Finally, the grip on her wrist was gone, and her reflexes kicked in- landing a perfect red hand print on his face. "I told you! I was working!" Rubbing her sore wrist, she felt the impact on her hand still as it felt like pins and needles were pricking every part of her palm and fingers. "I don't get why you're so mad at me."

His face stung, but only a little bit, and he didn't know why he was so mad either. It was like all frustrations of the day all bubbled up at once and Fuu just seemed to tip the scale. He always seemed to be on edge lately, he found it almost impossible to relax. Especially now, looking at her downcast eyes and her touslled hair- she looked different somehow.

"Ah, Mugen, You broke it!"

"Broke what?"

Pushing against his chest, Mugen had no choice but to take a few steps back as Fuu bent down and picked up the item in question.

"Jeez...it was so pretty too..." Fuu picked up the hair stick that had held her hair up, but there were shards on the ground that once made up the cherry blossom charm at the end.

"-A gift from your little boyfriend?"

"Yes." Standing up, tall and firm, she twirled the hair stick between her fingers like a small baton. "-In fact, because of him I had a day full of luxury. I got top of the line spa treatments, I got my makeup done, and even my hair. In case you haven't noticed." Crossing her arms she expected Mugen to have the same airy, uninterested expression he used to get whenever she would talk about men, or how attractive she was since after all her business was her business. But his expression sent chills down her body.

His hardened expression bore into her. His narrowed eyes seemed clouded by the shadows left by his knit brows. The muscle in his jaw bulged out as his teeth clenched together, he could taste a little bit of blood- he must have bit down on his cheek without realizing it. He knew she was lying about him being her boyfriend but it still ticked him off.

Rolling her eyes, she pulled out the hefty coin purse from her yellow obi and tossed it at him. "He was the son of the woman I worked for today. She wanted him to escort me since there was some lunatic running around." She laced her fingers behind her head with her elbows up in the air. "Jeez, you always get so worked up Mugen."

He tossed the coin purse up a few times, feeling the money jingle. She got a pretty hefty sum for just a days worth of work, he was impressed. Pissed off, but impressed.

"The least you could say is, _Wow Fuu, you're so dependable, thank you for working so hard, and you're so beautiful_." She lowered her voice, in an attempt at making herself sound like him, but in reality it was more comparable to when she ate her own weight in food.

"Just stop gabbing and let's go." Grabbing her by her arm once again, he pulled her along with him as they made their way down another mountain path, leaving the beautiful view of Fukui and the sea behind them.

* * *

"Next time, you get a job and I'll spend all day doing nothing."

She pouted at him from across the fire. Tonight she didn't want to be near him, she wanted to fall back into her old self and whine and complain until she got her own way. It's not that today was hard for her, it was one of the most relaxing days she's ever had but she was still looking forward to staying in a nice warm room with food and a bath. With her hair pulled over one shoulder she turned her face into it, breathing in the sweet floral scent that was left by the oil.

"Thought you said you went to a spa, so why are you getting mad at me?" He was trying not to look at her, he knew she looked different, and as soon as she said the word makeup he wanted to call out bullshit. Whenever he saw some broad with makeup on it was always noticeable, and it smelled terrible. Their eyes were always lined with thick black lines, and their lips unnaturally red- but that's not how Fuu looked. In an attempt at distracting himself, Mugen was picking away at the dry crusting skin of his right hand.

"I got paid to try out some new treatments for your information. Behold!" Pulling up her kimono sleeve, she made her way beside him, offering her smooth arm to him. "-the softest skin in all of Japan!"

"Hah?.." Arching an eyebrow at her, he looked at her arm then back to her face, and then back to her arm again. "What's so special about it?"

"Just feel!" Grabbing his left hand, his arm crossed in front of him and she made him pet her arm up and down. "Super soft right?" She couldn't help but grin at him.

Yanking his hand away from her her set his hands on his crossed knees. "I've felt softer." It wasn't exactly a lie, but it wasn't exactly the truth either. Her skin really was soft but he couldn't remember the feeling of the last woman he was with. At the time he always thought they were soft, it was like somehow women were universally softer and smoother than men. They were just born that way, it was how they were supposed to be.

"Hmph! Fine, then I guess I'll just enjoy it all by myself." Shifting away from him she rolled up the hem of her kimono to her knees and she pet her legs like they were some kind of treasure.

Smirking, he looked over at her newly revealed skin. The light of the fire even left a sheen reflection on them- he could see just how soft the skin was. "You mean you were gonna let me touch you just like that?" Maybe leaving Fukui was a bad idea, if he would have taken off his haori and maybe tied his hair up he could have been in the company of a real woman. Hell, the girl even said she would leave him to have his own fun next time.

"A-As if! I'm not cheap like those other women. You only wish you could have a beauty like me." Sticking her tongue out at him she quickly retracted it when she felt his warm hand on the top of her revealed shin.

"So you sayin' you have a price?" With a hefty huff from his nose he ran his hand up higher closer to her knee. "-like a cheap hair stick?"

Pulling her leg away from his hand she unraveled her kimono hem, covering her legs once again. "Mugen! Don't be a pig! And if that hair stick was so cheap why don't you fix it or buy me new one since YOU broke it!"

"Not like I meant to break it."

Grabbing his hand, Fuu turned it over so his palm was up and she firmly placed the hair stick on his rough skin. "-Don't care. Just fix it." Eyes widening, it was like stars sparkled around her. "Or you can deduct the price from the dumpling debt!"

 _'God damn it how can she change her mood so much?...Just watching her makes me tired..'_ His eyes downcast at the supposedly broken hair stick. He looked at it but couldn't figure out what was exactly broken about it. It looked fine to him, it wasn't snapped, cracked or chipped anywhere. "How is this broken? Looks fine to me, and why do you need something like this huh? Who you got to impress?"

"Look-" Her tiny, well shaped nails pointed at the end of the beaded strand. "-there's supposed to be a charm there. But you stepped on it." Using the same finger she pointed at the strand was now inches away from Mugen's face. "And it never hurts to look good."

Smacking her hand out of his face he pretended to spit on the ground. "Pew...it's gonna take more than some hair stick and makeup to make you look good." His eyes followed the dangling beads as he held the hair stick up in front of him. "..So you just need some dumb charm?"

"Hmph...I guess." Crossing her arms and sticking her nose up in the air she decided to ignore the insult. At this point, him not insulting her would be strange- she wouldn't even know how to react if he ever actually complimented her. He had been acting "strange" the other night, bringing her in close to sleep against him like that. If it had been almost anyone else she was sure her heart would have exploded, or she would have punched them out. But it wasn't anyone else, it was Mugen. Sighing, she couldn't help but think maybe she should have punched him when he did that.

"Here."

"Huh?"

"I fixed it."

Holding out the hair stick between his two fingers Fuu took it from him. _'How could have he fixed it?'_ Looking at the end of the beaded strand, she expected there to be a rock tied to the end but she was pleasantly surprised to see there wasn't. In place of the cherry blossom flower was a smooth round ornament. The green colour stood out from the opaque pink and white of the beads, and complimented the copper colouring of the stick. Never in a million years would she think to pair together all of these colours but they worked together beautifully.

"What is this?"

"It doesn't matter, it's fixed like you wanted."

"Saying something like that makes me even more curious. Where did you get it?" She rolled the new ornament between her thumb and index finger, being mindful of the quick fix it was. "If you don't tell me I'll just keep asking until you do. Muuuuugen, where did you get this? Huh? Mugen-"

"It's my earring." Pointing to his right ear, she had almost forgotten about the missing piece of his lobe. "-not like I'll be needing it anymore, and if it will make you shutup then it's a win win."

"Your earring?...Huh...I guess so.." Laying down, she outstretched her arm, holding the hair pin high above her face. The jade earring at the end seemed to shine brighter against the fire's light better than all the other beads. Mugen's earrings were the only refined things about him, he always wore them, but he never talked about how he got them or when. There had been a point where she wanted to ask him about them, but why bother? Everyone had something they liked, or something that they didn't need but they still had. Jin had his glasses, which he used has his own security blanket, and Mugen had these earrings. They were so small and delicate compared to him, and to see a man wearing earrings was already rare. Bringing her hand and the hair stick down onto her chest, she gripped the material. It was unfair...unfair how the world viewed him, and how he allowed it. He was far kinder than any of them could imagine, even if they viewed him as some kind of beast she would refuse to accept it. The world was left jaded by him, cynical, weary, and afraid of him; and he viewed the world that way as well. Letting go of the material over her chest, she played with the jade earring once again by rolling it between her thumb and index finger.

She had been jaded too, but in a completely different way. She knew the world was an unfair place, and Mugen was the kind that was able to take advantage of these unfair situations. He was able to turn these bads things and make it into something that worked for him, that or he just didn't let it bother him. He took the actions of these jaded people head on, shaking them to the core. Even with these negative experiences, and situations that she was tossed in, he found his way back, he saved her again so it was only natural she be jaded as well.

Unfairly jaded, by him.


	9. Chapter 8 - Counterfeit Interpretation

**Okay, so took me longer to post this one. But my kids got sick, then I got sick, then it was Halloween, then there was speech therapy for my daughter and dance classes, and just a bunch of stuff. It is a shorter chapter compared to what I've been publishing but oh well. There is a character in this chapter and I just want to clear up his name now, it is "iemon" not "Lemon".**

 **Speaking of "Lemon", I need opinions. Lemons, yes or no? I originally planned for some VERY DESCRIPTIVE scenes (the scene with Fuu and Buta at the start was very..very very descriptive and dark but I cut it out!). I feel that adding them now might throw off the groove of things. I have considered writing these scenes separate from the story, kind of like extra little add-ons or "fake" chapters.**

 **Context warning:**

 **I use the term "homo" in this chapter, but that is only because of Mugen's character, he uses the term in the show and I want to apologize and let people know I DO NOT LIKE TO USE SUCH TERMS. I mean, I don't even swear, so it's hard for me to put it into my writing. If you all haven't noticed I usually use the same terms over again when Mugen is talking.**

 **Chapter 8 - Counterfeit Interpretation**

* * *

Smoke filled the dimly lit room as the large pair of lips pulled away from the kiseru pipe. Drapery hung over the paper lined windows and doors, not allowing the sun light to reach them. The only light sources were from 3 small lanterns place in a line along the long wall. A small feminine hand worked its way from his exposed chest, down to where the yukata covered- he didn't mind, he had time to waste until _they_ got back. Back in his prime he would have been enjoying his freedom, and his influence. However, the lines around his eyes and forehead only reminded him just how tired and old he was getting.

Loud footsteps stomped their way closer to the room until with a loud thud, they stopped outside of the covered shoji doors. "Aniki."

Inhaling another large amount of smoke, the man held it in his lungs before letting it out again. "What do you want?" He couldn't help but close his eyes, trying to ignore the voice and to pay attention to the hand working in a back and forth motion.

"Iemon-dono has returned-"

"So? Tell him to load them up and bring them to-"

"Alone...he's alone, Aniki."

Tapping the kiseru pipe into the tray, he emptied the ashes, all while removing the feminine hand from around his masculinity. The action must have shocked his female counterpart as she gasped and quickly backed away from him as he stood up. Bamboo collided with bamboo as one side of the shoji door was slid open, he stared down at the bowing attendant. "What did you say?"

Pressing his forehead down to the engawa, the attendant made sure not to stutter or hesitate. "Iemon-dono is back, and he's alone." Without looking up, the attendant felt the floor creak, shuffling himself to the side he made sure to keep his head down as his superior stepped past him. He made sure not to look up until he knew his aniki's back was turned from him. The man wasn't much larger than him, standing at a mere 5"7, but his presence was that of a monster-his temper even worse.

Squinting his eyes at the day light, the man realized it had been a few days since he last came out of that room. The days seemed to stretch out these last few months, he would sit in one room for days on end, until they had no choice but to set up somewhere else. The days of him runnings the streets, or pushing product was long behind him. How many years had it been since he started getting called _aniki? Four_? No, five years now. Aniki wasn't a title taken lightly, it took a lot of effort, sacrifice, and spilled blood to get it. Smirking, he couldn't help but wonder what kind of pathetic excuse Iemon had. Maybe the men finally had enough of him and decided to rebel, or maybe he sold them out to save his own head. Whatever it was, Iemon was as good as dead. Turning the corner, he was met with a few goons, standing outside of the room. Nodding at one another, they opened the doors for him.

"Iemon..." His eyes bore down at the over weight man, everything from his head to his toes were covered in filth and grime.

"A-Aniki!" Scrambling to bow down, his own enlarged stomach got in his way of bowing properly so he ducked his head as much as his chins would allow. "We were raided, there was nothing I could have done-" His voice was wavering, shakey, like he was nothing more than a kid being caught doing something naughty by his parent.

"Where are my horses?"

"I-"

"Where are my supplies?"

"Aniki, I can-"

"Where...are my men, Iemon? You have 10 seconds before you get dragged into the yard and gutted like the pig you are." With two fingers, he waved them in the air, bringing in the men that were standing outside. "10."

Sitting up, the overweight man wiped sweat from his brow but only smeared more dirt on it. "It wasn't my fault!"

"9."

"The camp was stormed at night-"

"8."

"I barely made it out alive-"

"7."

"He was a mad man that dodged our bullets-"

"6."

"He and some girl killed everyone but me!"

Kicking the fat man down, the floor shifted with his weight. "You mean to tell me, 30 men, 30 OF MY MEN WERE TAKEN DOWN BY ONE MAN AND SOME GIRL!?" Reaching over, he pulled out a sword from another man's waist, pointing it at the blabbering fat man below. "Do you take me for some kind of fool Iemon!? Do you expect me to believe such a ridiculous story!?"

"I-It's true I swear! He was like an animal, he dodged our bullets and cut men down like they were nothing!" No longer able to control his own emotions, rivers of tears ran from his eyes and mucus touched his top lip. "I-I will find him and bring him to you! PLEASE SPARE ME!"

Countless men, and faces have begged and pleaded at his feet before, offering something to buy back their lives but this one was one of the most pathetic. Popping his lips, he couldn't help but be intrigued by the notion- meeting the man who took down an entire camp, but the fat man was completely worthless which made the suggestion laughable. Iemon was nothing but a messenger, a worthless middleman that let whatever little power he had get to his head. Underneath of it all, he was nothing but a worthless coward who can't even use a weapon properly- it was because of his attitude and the way with the lower men that he allowed him to stay for so long. So, perhaps this wasn't just some lie, perhaps there really was a man and a woman gutsy enough to do this. Lowering his blade, half of his mouth curled into a smile, revealing two of his gold teeth. "Interesting. Now tell me, Iemon, what does this mystery duo look like? Do they have names?"

Wiping the sticky mess from his mouth and nose on one of his sleeves, Iemon only seemed to smear it on his face. His body still shaking, he knew he needed to answer now or there wouldn't be another chance.

 _Plopping himself down on his cushioned chair, he finally released the grasp on his wooden cane while trying to catch his breath once again. Rubbing his large, engrossed stomach he knew that this wealth he acquired had some small prices to pay. But what was the point in having so much if you weren't able to enjoy it all? Tobacco, clothes, food, women- there was no shortage for him. All he needed to do was say his name, say who his boss was and there was no questioning it. But that sick degenerate in the other tent was something else- he had the gull to go after him and his men. He actually managed to kill a few of them, but this wasn't his first time dealing with someone like him. There would only be two outcomes to something like this, either he would be killed, or he would accept his generous offer. It was usually the second option for those that were strong enough, all he had to do was wave around his revolver, a little convincing and then he would have another follower. Snickering, he wiped his brow at the thought that maybe one day he would be able to overtake the entire operation, that he would be the big boss. At this rate it wouldn't be longer now and his dream would be a reality._

 _"AAAAAGGGHHHHHHHHHH!"_

 _The sudden scream made his heart skip a beat and his entire chest tightened. He had seen and done some cruel things, but he never made someone scream like that. With a firm grip on his cane, he hoisted himself up, and took a look out of his tent. There in the center of the camp where most of the men usually gathered was the man that was just tied up, bleeding, taking down his own hired help. "H-How..how did he?"_

 _Shouting from the other side of camp caught his attention, a tent was soon engulfed in flames, and then he saw her._

"She's small...very small, she had a yellow obi. She couldn't be older than 18, or maybe 20. And he...was tall, d-dark skin, scars on his face, and he had tattoos of a criminal. I don't know her name, but she called him _Mugen_." With a deep exhale, he was no longer shaking. His yukata clung to his back where he knew his sweat had soaked through, build up of perspiration was growing in the folds of his chins. The late September heat never agreed with his widening body, but the stress he was put under didn't help him either.

"Thank you, Iemon. But...I have no need for someone as useless as you." With a clean swing of the blade, red spattered from the blade onto the paper lined walls. "Looks like there's some clean up boys." Shoving the blade back to its original owner, he wiped the few specks of blood from his hand onto the garment of someone else. He had wanted to rid of Iemon for quite some time, it was rather liberating to see his lifeless body at last. He was even more repulsive to look at in death. Covering his nose with his sleeve, he took one last look at the lifeless body. Like a ripped seam, the slash seemed to be pulled wide due to gravity and the large pockets of flesh, revealing the veins and milky layers of fat covering the body. "Gather up whoever you can, spread the word and comb the city, the mountain and the surrounding villages. I want them found, and I want them to know who they're dealing with." He wouldn't be taken for a fool, there was already the incident at one of the posts in the Kansai province, and now this. He even had ties within the shogunate, and was slowly beginning to solidify connections within the ports- soon he could be selling internationally. So who the hell was causing him all this trouble? Maybe someone on the inside is messing with him? After all, what were the odds off two set backs like this within such a short amount of time? Hardly stepping foot out of the room, he was met with another bowing henchman. "What do you want?"

"Pushers from section 4 ran into trouble, they were mugged and taken down."

"When?"

"Just now. Following protocol we took down the report, _she_ already left to deal with it." Arm extended out, he offered his aniki a small scroll- the report of what happened. "She'll make sure he's reported, and we'll send our _officers_ after him."

Taking the report from his hands, he unrolled it and skimmed the page very quickly, stopping half way through the report. "Was there a woman with him?"

"I don't think so-"

"Find him and bring him here. Keep all ears and eyes open for a young woman with a yellow obi who may be travelling with him." With his eyes still sternly reading the report over and over again, he made his way back to his quarters. _'Scars on his face, tanned skin, and tattoos of a criminal.'_ He read the words over and over again on the report. There was no way this was just a coincidence, this was the same man Iemon had reported. "Who the hell is he?!" Tearing down the drapery around his room, the midday sun came rushing in through the thin paper. _'Is it some other yakuza? Is someone trying to take me down from the inside?!'_ Grinding his teeth together, the description of the man, and the woman seemed too familiar. Looking over his shoulder, he looked at the report that was just delivered to him a few days ago. _'It couldn't be..'_

* * *

Her lightly clothed feet dashed across another red clay shingle, easily jumping the gap between the buildings. Her presence no longer alarmed the locals, not that they ever got a good look at her. Even if they did see her, who would they tell? Who would they make their report to? Who would stop her? This place, this city, and these people were all under his control, whether they liked it or not. Even the provincial daimyo answers to his beck and call, just like her. Her once proud family had fallen to this sickening depth. She was no longer the daughter of a Shogunate's secret service offer, she was just just a worker for a common criminal. Maybe it was karma, some sort of sick joke the world decided to play on her. After her self righteous path of freedom, and attempt of good deeds, she was placed here. To do the dirty work in the shadows, to help remind people exactly who ran the show. There were times that he took a different approach, in broad daylight, taking someone down to make a point- but more often than not, it was her that was sent. A death out of sight, only to be stumbled upon by some poor chump. Dropping in a narrow alley between two buildings, she braced herself as her feet crashed onto the ground. A small cloud of dust and dirt stirred around her ankles. Pulling down the black cloth mask from her nose and mouth, she pursed out her lips. Bending at the knees, she inspected her next job; an unconscious pusher. He didn't look like he had anything wrong with him, not a bruise or a bleeding wound. Whoever did this meant to leave him alive, probably expecting someone to stumble on his body and call an officer. Most of his face and chest were covered in the white powder that probably started the entire dispute.

Pulling out a hidden knife from her thigh, she looked at his body again, sighing to herself.

 _"Make it bloody, like a mongrel did it. Make sure his family won't recognise him in the afterlife."_

Pulling the black cloth that covered her lower face she hid her features once again. _'Sorry pal, you're not going to be going home today.'_ Doing the most humane thing she could, she plunged the blade into the man's heart first, holding it in place for a bit before pulling it out. If that pain didn't pull him out of his unconscious state then nothing at this point would. She didn't have to worry about making him suffer, hopefully he wasn't a fighter and it was an instant death. Taking the knife to his body again and again, she left long gashes all over his sides and stomach. When what was on the inside started spewing out she had to take a step away to calm her stomach. She never liked this part of the job, sure they might have been bad people but they were innocent compared to who was giving the orders. She didn't like this type of death, it wasn't her style. She preferred the clean and quick approach, but this was like gutting an animal and leaving it for the crows. _"-Make sure his family won't recognise him in the afterlife."._ Biting down on her tongue and turning her head, she slashed the blade back and forth a few times over his face.

Standing back up, she wiped the blade on a rag that had been discarded on the ground before letting it flutter back down to its dusty home. Whoever the target was, he really messed up- there was no way he was going to be able to leave this city. Hiding the blade in the security of her thigh wrap, she peered around the corner, onto the busy street. Sliding around to a shop set up, she slipped her arms into a kimono on display and tightly wrapping it around herself. She pulled down her black face mask and tucked it as low into the kimono's neck line as she could. She looked like the average person now, unless someone happened to look down at her feet that were still slightly exposed by her foot dressings. No one seemed to be paying attention to her as she crossed the street, where she could get a better view of the alley- before she made a commotion she needed to blend in, to emerge herself with those around her. The looks on everyone's faces told her everything, they knew something had just happened but they didn't know what. People here were very perceptive, and even if they may have smiles on their faces, their eyes were empty. They were slowly dying on the inside just like her. There were few that lived happily, in their blissful ignorance, but they didn't know any better because they were only children. They were too blind or innocent to see the corruption that was happening in front of them.

The heart warming laughter filled her ears which brought her attention to a young boy who was chasing his koma top that seemed to be spinning out of control. A swirl of brown, red and blue lifted dust off the ground as the wooden toy still spun with all its might. A old fraying cord dangled on the ground from the boys hand as he watched and followed it with anticipation. Where would it stop? How long will it keep going for? Hitting a small stone, the top toppled over, spinning around on a circle on its side before coming to a complete stop. The boy was quick to wrap the cord back around it before spinning it once again. It instantly zipped away from the boy, and started in a diagonall trajectory towards the alley.

She always admired children, and their ability to see past the darkness and into the light. But how much would it take before that's all they would be able to see? At what point did the sparkle, the light, in their eyes fade away? Before she knew it, she had a tight grasp on the boys wrist, keeping him from going into the shadows of the alley. Time seemed to slow down as her eyes went from the confused and concerned look of the young boy's face, to a staggering, tall figure dressed in red making its way down the alley. His hair was wild, and dirty, His skin was dark, he had been more than just kissed by the sun, and it made the whitened skin of his scars much more noticeable. One crossed through his right eyebrow, and there was three distinct lines on his cheek that was puffed out from whatever fruit he seemed to be eating. Her eyes drank in every detail of the face she never thought she would see again.

 _"Report reads, tall man, at least 185 cm, red top, tattoos of a criminal, and a sword on his back."_

Unfortunately, what she felt was fate, or destiny would have to wait. After all, she had a job to. Spinning the boy towards her, she pushed his face into his chest so he wouldn't have to see the terror that lay bleeding on the ground. Pointing out her finger she screamed as loud as she could.

"KYAAA OFFICER! SOMEONE, HELP! There was a murder!"

Word must have already been spread to _his_ officers because in no time they were in pursuit. It was as if they were waiting for her signal before they came rushing out. She wanted to follow them, she wanted to pull him from it all and assure him that he would be safe- but he could handle himself. He was the one man that she knew was capable of amazing things. He was the man that she claimed would be her husband one day.

* * *

 _Standing at the base of the small hill, she watched as her partner Otawa carried the unconscious man towards the tree. It was unforgivingly hot today, she she would do him the favour of putting him in the shade. The night had been long and tiresome, and without him she never would have succeeded in the year long operation. 'A year huh?' She couldn't help but be grateful to this nameless man, as much as he was idiotic, he was strong. Stronger than any other man she had met, he was reckless but it worked for him. He exceeded her expections, not that she had any to begin with but because of it, she was smitten._

 _Otawa finally sat the man down on his rear under the large tree and rested his back against the bark. The large lump she left on top of his head suggested that perhaps she hit him too hard with the piece of wood but if he was as strong as she thought, he would be fine._

 _"Yatsuha, are you sure he's gonna be okay if we leave him here like this?"_

 _"It looked like he had traveling companions. They'll probably come looking for him. Come on, let's get moving. It's a long way to Edo." She would be lying to herself if she said she wasn't eager to get back home. It had been an entire year away from her father. They only corresponded through coded letters and nicknames. Turning on her heel she made her way down the dirt path._

 _Noticing his female counterpart leaving without him, Otawa rushed to his feet and closed the distance between them. "I just hope the crows don't eat him first."_

 _Lacing fingers behind her back she couldn't help but smile with the cityscape to her right. "He'll be fine. He's not that delicate. After all, that's the man who's gonna be my husband."_

 _"Huh!?" At a loss, he had to stop and stare at her back. Mouth agape, he almost forgot how to breath. 'That mongrel with Yatsuha? N-No way!'_

 _"I'm in love!" Lifting her face up to the sky, it was nice to see the clouds out in the open air instead of in the brothel or from behind shaded alleys. She wanted to wait for her love to regain consciousness but there was still stuff to be done- justice to be served. 'Bye-bye. Once both our journeys are over, I'll come find you.'_

 _"A-Are you serious?" Finally gathering his thoughts, Otawa once again caught up to her. She moved fast, as the cityscape was no longer by their sides, and instead it was replaced with lush green grass and tall trees. All he got in response was a giggle and her captivating smile._

* * *

Having discarded the stolen kimono, her feet tapped against clay and wooden shingles as she followed the commotion. She wanted to see him, she needed to watch his every movement. It wasn't just because of her orders, it was because her heart was screaming at her to follow him. She had left him against the tree three years ago, and now as fate would have it, they stumbled upon each other again. If this wasn't a sign then she didn't know what was. He looked the same as he had back then, maybe a few new scars, but even his clothing was the same. What would he say if he saw her? Would he even remember her? So many things clouded her mind but there were more important things to worry about. _'What will happen if he gets caught?'_ The beast of a man ran at a group of officers with loaded rifles, missing all shots fired at him. It made her stomach knot but it also made her smirk. She expected nothing less from the man she loved and longed for for the past few years.

"IF YOU'RE GONNA STOP ME, YA GOTTA TRY HARDER THAN THAT!"

Leaping over to the final roof in the line up, she looked over the edge as he scaled a fence, leaving the chasing officers behind. The desire to call out to him was almost unsuppressable, she wanted to jump down and chase him, leave the city with him. But, she wasn't a fool. No matter how much she despised her life now, she couldn't just run away. Everyone, and everything she once cared for had to do their part to keep things together. _'But...I could warm him...tell him to leave.'_ Bracing herself to jump down, the man seemed frantic- like he had just remembered something important.

"Fuck, where the hell are you girl?" Wiping some sweat from his brow, he ran off into a crowd, slowly disappearing into the faceless numbers.

Clenching her hands into fists she bit her bottom lip. _'Ha..so he has someone with him huh? Of course he does..'_ Clicking her tongue she jumped down onto the ground, and continued her pursuit.

She followed him everywhere, and he seemed to be set on finding his companion. He went into over a dozen different teahouses and restaurants, all while dodging and avoiding any officers. He hid behind carts, crates, almost everything that he could- he managed to stay unseen. He was getting flustered and angry, but he wasn't shouting or getting violent with anyone or anything. His face was tight, never relaxing his brows or his clenched jaw. He seemed eerily calm, despite all of the factors, but he never called out his companions name. It reminded her of herself, when it was time to get serious, like the calm before the storm. He was living up to her memory of him, confirming the type of man she thought he was.

The day seemed to fly by, before she knew it the sun was setting. He managed to evade all attempts any officers had all day, he was seasoned at not only fighting but in evasion. At one point he waited outside the city on the mountain path for over an hour, but he never stopped tapping his foot against the ground as he stared at the city as he waited. Under his breath he grunted something along the lines of; _"I'll fuckin' leave without ya, I swear to god you brat.'_. As soon as the orange and red hues hit the sky he dashed back into the city, despite him already being out of sight of those within. He was home free, so who was this person he was looking for and why were they so important to him? If he got caught there was nothing she would be able to do to help him. Once he entered once again he finally seemed to show how frantic he was. He rushed through different streets, pushing people over, mumbling threats to his missing companion under his breath.

Letting out a large yawn, she blinked past the tears that formed. The gulls reminded her just how far into the city he managed to get in such a short amount of time- he was practically at the harbour. _'Why doesn't he just leave already?'_

He was scratching his scalp every few seconds and never stopped mumbling to himself- a nervous habit perhaps?

"-A Kabuki performer? Wow that's impressive Hinata!"

Like a dog hearing its owner, Mugen's head and posture seemed to perk up. She assumed his eyes caught the the body from which the voice came from.

"Hmmm?" Arching and eyebrow, she followed what she assumed was his line of vision and saw a girl with a yellow obi, standing at a small shop with a man. _'Is that who he's been looking for?'_ Puffing air out of her nose she studied the woman. She was feminine, a soft face with pink pouty lips, large soulful eyes, and an honest smile. She had everything that she used to have. At some point her eyes must have been filled with light like that, and when was the last time she was able to smile that brightly? Eyeing the girl up and down some more, Yatsuha came to the decision that her own body was more developed and womanly- giving her one mental tick on the score board. _'Well? Aren't you gonna go get her bad boy?'_ Her eyes went from her mysterious love to the girl, and back and forth a few times. He didn't move, he stood there in the middle of the street watching them. _'What's he thinking?'_

* * *

"A Kabuki performer? Wow that's impressive Hinata!"

His head snapping up, he looked around, trying to find where her voice came from. There was no mistaken that it was her, but why the fuck wasn't she at the meeting spot and who was _Hinata_? His eyes caught the bright yellow of her obi like it was shouting out to him. Even with the distance between them, he could tell there was something different about her. Maybe she didn't look as tired? Momentarily it was like he had been released from a huge weight of his shoulders but the cruel world slammed it back down on him with even more force. A tall, short haired guy seemed to be getting cozy next to her, he almost mistook him for a girl but there was no mistaken it. They seemed to be getting a long well, too well for his liking. He could feel his face grow hot, and an uncomfortable wave of anger, and frustration surged through him. They were only a few yards from him, and yet she didn't look at him. Didn't she realize he was there? Didn't she know they were supposed to be at the meeting spot? Why didn't she look at him?

Holding a mirror up, she was showing the man his own reflection with some girly ass hair stick. Maybe the guy was a homo? _'Nah...there's no damn way.'_ He saw the way he looked at Fuu when she went to set the mirror down, he was staring at her like a sicko. Why the hell was she so fucking oblivious to everything and everyone around her? Watching the sissy touch her and her hair, he decided then that he would make his face not so pretty anymore. Taking a few large strides towards them, the guy was suddenly holding Fuu's hand, and that was the last straw.

* * *

Yatsuha didn't stick around to see how it all ended, she still had to report in at the end of the day. They were probably expecting her hours ago, but she couldn't pull herself from him, and now that he found his companion she was certain he would be leaving. It was enough to satisfy her, because no matter how strong he was, there would always be strength in numbers.

Jumping over one particularily large gap between buildings, her foot barely managed to catch the edge, keeping herself from plummeting down. Running up the steep roof, she easily slid down when she reached the peak of the tall elaborate building. Bracing herself for landing, her the parts of exposed feet tickled against the grass of her employers courtyard. There were guards standing outside of one room which implied where she needed to be.

Kneeling on one knee and lowering her head she looked at the grooves of the engawa, trying to pretend she was anywhere else. "I'm back...my lord." The term always left a bad taste in her mouth, but he was her employer, nothing more. The other's all called him "Aniki", because they chose to work under him, they joined him because they were lower than dirt just like him- they were scum. Unlike them, she wasn't here by choice.

"You were supposed to report back as soon as you were done."

"I felt it necessary to participate in the pursuit."

"Then-" The door slid open and knobby manicured toes overtook the view of the wood. "-why did you come back empty handed?"

Tightening her fists, she could feel her nails start to dig into her palm. "It wasn't requested for me to reprimand him. I thought your countless officers would be able to handle one man." She couldn't help but chortle under her breath. _'Damn Yatsuha..you really did it now.'_

Keeping his calm and imperturbable demeanor, he slammed his left foot down on her head. "Where is he now?" He watched as she tried to keep herself up off the floor, she didn't grunt or gasp at his wooden footwear digging into her scalp. Her arms began to shake as he added more pressure, leaning into her head more as if she was nothing more than a step.

Elbows finally buckling under the weight the side of her face slammed into the ground. Her rear was propped up in the air as her knees stayed bent, not allowing herself to fully be pressed down. "By now he's probably left." The words barely made it out of her gritting teeth. "He left on the mountain path, and came back for a girl." The edge of his heeled sandal started to did into her scalp, like it would crack her open like a egg.

Lifting some of his weight off of her head, he couldn't help but feel a rush of adrenaline go through him. "A girl? What did she look like?"

"Small. Slender. Brown ha-"

"What was she wearing?"

"A pink kimono and a yellow obi."

Lifting his foot off of her head completely, he lifted her head back up by gripping her chin in his fingers. "Well done, Yatsuha. I'll forgive your outburst and overlook your disregard for your orders, once you earn it."

She knew what his words meant all too well. The prurient underlinings of his nature were made apparent to her as soon as she came under his employment. It had been months since she last endured his advances, she thought that part of her "employment" was over with. It was weeks she spent in his quarters without seeing the sunlight. He told her that once she learned to behave, and to know where she belonged, she would be allowed out. It was supposed to be some "honour" to be chosen, but countless women and faces joined them regularly. Sometimes he would watch, sometimes he would join, and other times he would humiliate her by bringing strange men in. He would say it was no big deal, after all her stake out at a brothel for a year was no mystery to him.

The damn bastard knew everything from the beginning. Despite it only being rumors, her father Jinpachi sent her to watch and gather information while pretending to be a common whore. She was honoured to take on such a responsibility, the entire operation depended on her gathering information, but there were two things she was not aware of. Why the money was being counterfieted in the first place, and who was really behind the entire operation. It was just assumed it was the Tsuda family desired to line their own pockets more, to own the entire economy, but that wasn't the case. She should have waited 3 years ago, gathered some more information first but some civilians got involved, finding the koban that was to be used for evidence- so she had no choice but to act. She was a fool for thinking that it was over that night, that she and her mystery man had taken them all down, that they ended things then and there. It wasn't but two weeks after she returned home to Edo that her father started acting strange, money was missing, he would become absent minded at times, and then he would be thrown into a fit of rage. That's when he appeared, this corrupt, dirty, vile man. He was the real boss of everything, he was the one that gathered and hired the men to make the counterfeit koban, he was the one that pulled her father down to his level by filling him up with his dirty "money maker", turning him into some drug dependant junkie. Yes..she really was a fool for thinking it was only about counterfeit money, because in the end, that was only a small part of an elaborate opperation.

Running his thumb over her lips, he licked his own. "You can start earning my forgiveness once you get back. I need you to find an important member of our group and send him an invitation." Pulling out a small scroll from within his yukata, he handed it to her. "Go to to Osaka, immediately, tell him I found some people of interest."

"Hai." Nodding her head back down into a quick bow, she jumped back before he changed his mind and left into the sunset.

"My lord...are you sure it was wise to send her?" A shadow jumped down from, landing where Yatsuha just was. "I believe she knows the criminal. She followed him all day without doing anything to him."

"That's exactly why I sent her to get my guest...you'll follow Mugen...and that girl Fuu. Find out where they're going, what they're planning, and exactly who they are." Waving his hand, he dismissed the male figure dressed in black. Folding his arms, he went back into his quarters and plopped himself behind his desk that was low to the ground. Once again lighting up his kiseru pipe, he inhaled a large amount of smoke while reading a report from dated to 2 weeks ago. He chuckled to himself, suppressing his anger. What were the odds of this happening? Two, no three, incidents in three weeks, and all by the same god damn people.

 _'September 8th, Terazawa post burned down by unknown criminal in red. Criminal stepped in while disposing of young girl, named Fuu, who was working at the post as a Inn handy worker, destroyed 10 kilo of raw merchandise while delivery was made. Both parties whereabouts are unknown. Wanted posters are being drawn. Male: wanted dead or alive. Girl: wanted alive.-'_

The report continued on, along with a description of the two and rough drawings, which was all he cared for at this point. The Terazawa post was being rebuilt, and a temporary building was already in place. He didn't need to worry about sales going down, or about the production of the merchandise being in jeopardy especially since the payout to keep any rumors or arrests from happening had already been sent. Rubbing his cleanly shaved chin, he looked at the rough sketches of the two culprits. "Fuu and Mugen, I look forward to meeting you."


	10. Chapter 9 - Weathered Disrobement

**Howdy everyone. Thank you for those who showed concern regarding my children and I getting sick- it's cold and flu season here, and with lots of cuddles and down time we're fine. I know it took me longer to post this but hey, I've been busy, we all have our own lives, right?**

 **I have received some feedback in regards to lemons (some comments, and some messages). Someone in particular has mentioned how they're sure I will make it realistic (which I would like to think I would as well), BUT... I honestly have to say it. I don't really think Mugen has any game in bed, straight up. I think he does what he needs to get done to make himself feel good but he probably has no idea on how to actually please a woman. I can totally see him being one of those guys that say "I'm going to make you scream", and then he just jack hammers you for 3 minutes and is done. So for the sake of Mugen's reputation and for the sake of all of our hearts, if I do decide to put a full fledge lemon in, I will be getting more imaginative and creative with him.**

 **So keeping all of that in mind...I put a LIGHT LEMON in this chapter (would it even be considered Lemon?...I'm not too sure but there's more sexual tension and build up now). I'm so nervous about this chapter! So much more could have been done, and so much more description could have been included.**

 **I definitely took an idea from my other fanfic (the one that I haven't published yet), to use in this chapter, I hope it will help satisfy certain urges people are having (maybe this could have waited a few more chapters but too bad, what's done is done!)  
**

 **Chapter 9 - Weathered Disrobement**

* * *

"What? How dumb are you? That way will just lead back to the ocean."

"Huh? I'm not dumb! Fukui was that way, so how would this way go back to the ocean then?!"

"Ehh? You really are an idiot." Hitting his own forehead, he was getting frustrated. It was like dealing with a child. The girl didn't know which way was which, all she was good for was reading what it said on the signs, but there wasn't any around. He was already carrying her damn bag for her, it wasn't even heavy but yet she complained that it was hurting her shoulders. "That's West, and that's North where Fukui is. If we don't want to hit the coast then we gotta go South or East."

Rubbing her temples, she couldn't make sense of which way was which. After deciding to take a different path from Fukui, they found themselves surrounded by large trees and sudden drops offs. Mugen lead the way for the most part but they had been walking steadily for a day and a half already but they were still on the mountain. Rather than walking down, Mugen seemed to be using the mountain as a regular road. But it wasn't, it was a tough terrain for someone like her. If they had clear view of the sun it would help her know which way was which but the untouched nature of the mountain blocked the view of the sky. "-And how can you be so sure that's West, and that's North?"

"I just know." Scratching his chin, his wiry hairs seemed longer than he liked them. It had been awhile since he took a dip anywhere to clean himself, and even longer since he attempted to shave himself. Running his hand along his jawline he could feel patches of stubble that were most likely shadowing his features. "It's like being out on the sea. You learn where to go because of where you've been, and it ain't like we got somewhere we need to be."

"Yea, I guess."

"So let's go, I'm gettin' hungry."

 _'Food...it's your own fault that we didn't get any food you jerk.'_ Following close behind, she stepped wherever he did. The shrubs and ferns were large and healthy, untouched by people, and Mugen's large feet helped clear some of it out of her way. Yesterday she had asked why they had to leave Fukui in the first place, she knew he was somehow involved in that murder Hinata was talking about, but Mugen didn't say a word. Whenever she asked why, he asked where all they removed her hair at the spa. Her face would instantly turn red, she was sure he already knew the answer. She was never good at concealing her emotions, especially with things like that- it was just too embarrassing and the fact Mugen knew was too much. So she decided to leave the matter alone, but it was still itching at her. There was no way that Mugen would just leave a place full of food, places to sleep and presumably, sake and women. It was like he was having a tantrum about something, and because of it she was caught up in his "mood". The least he could have done was let her get something to eat, but she hardly even had a chance to say goodbye to Hinata or his mother.

They had been so kind to her, they made her feel and look like a girl again. Travelling like this always made her look horrible- at least she felt that way. Sure, she wasn't exactly the feminine type, no matter how much she tried to be but she still liked good hygiene. Tucking a still silky strand of hair behind her ear, she was letting her hair remain down until it got too dirty to look presentable. Mugen might not care how he looks but she still had some standards for herself, and somehow looking dirty seemed to fit Mugen.

He was a gruff looking guy, and having a bit of dirt on him just seemed to work but his current state was starting to get excessive. His usually fluffy and wild hair was losing its volume, and his jawline was beginning to be shadowed with facial hair she didn't know he could grow. The red of his haori didn't seem as bright, sweat rings had stained his back and below his pits- surely his shirt underneath wasn't any better. The heat had been almost unbearable since yesterday so it wasn't that surprising that he had been sweating so much. The heat in the forest was almost unfathomable, like it was trapping in the heat and not letting any of it out.

"We need to have a bath." Almost like a sigh, she stepped down on one particularly large fern leaf. At this point she would even settle for a little stream. At least that way Mugen would freshen himself up and she could try to tackle washing his clothes. It was a chore that was cast upon her during their original journey, and now it was like an unspoken rule- she was on laundry duty. Thankfully for her, nee-san from the Inn had washed her kimono while they were there but Mugen's hadn't been washed, since well, she actually had no idea. The last time they were at a stream or river she was still out of it, she was still caught in her own self pity to do anything. Eyes widening she couldn't help but gasp at the idea that popped into her head. "You don't suppose this mountain has any hot springs, do you!?"

"How the hell would I know? And even if there is, I don't like bathing with monkeys." Looking over his shoulder he looked to her face, he couldn't help but wait for her response.

"Who are you calling a monkey?!" Flipping her hair she rested her hands on her hips and pushed her chest up. "-I'll have you know I was called a natural beauty when I was in Fukui."

Clicking his tongue, he shook his head before twacking her on the forehead. He made a quick note that he still couldn't feel anything with his right hand, but the tingling sensation was gone. "You mean by that homo?"

"Ow!" Smacking his hand away, she rubbed the now sore spot on her head. "Hinata isn't gay! Or.. at least I don't think he is, but either way, a compliment is a compliment!"

"Hmph yea whatever, if he called ya a natural beauty or whatever then why the hell did you get all that shit put on your face?" Arching a brow at her, she still had the makeup on. She had been guarding her head like it was some kind of treasure, trying not to smear it or ruin it. What was the point? It was going to come off eventually and he didn't like the way it made her look. It wasn't Fuu, she wasn't supposed to look like that, she looked like an actual girl. It was all getting to be too much for him, he needed some other female company and fast. _'Yea..that's what it is. Just been spending too much time with this brat.'_ His mind and body has been so deprived that it was starting to respond to her- at least that was the conclusion he had come to.

"It was a treat from his mother actually. They saw all my scars and bruises-" Pressing her lips tightly together, she cut herself off. _'Yeah...that's right, it's not that they were trying to be nice. They saw me as pitiful. A girl covered in filth, scars, and bruises and they couldn't have me leaving their business like that. It would look bad on them if they did.'_ Placing her hands on his chest she pushed him. "Now, now, let's just keep going. Maybe there are some hot springs here!"

"Yea whatever, ya don't have to push me." Even though he said that, he allowed himself to turn around while the small woman behind him pushed him onwards. A small breeze seemed to break between all of the greenery, making its way past them. The familiar scent now lingered on the air, and he couldn't help but nod his head to the side- thinking that the heat made sense. "Well, if we don't hurry up and find somewhere we will be gettin' a shower tonight."

"What? But It's so hot out!" Looking up, she could see a small part of the blue sky through all of the branches and leafs."Even if it does rain, it's so thick here it should cover us. Right?"

"Not bloody likely."

"Well, maybe we should try to make some hats then if-"

"Shhh!" Clasping his hand over her mouth he held up the opposite index finger in front of his face. Quirking his head to the side he let out his signature cackle. "-ya hear that? Sounds like dinner to me."

Curling her lips inward, she didn't like the feel of the poorly done stitches on her face. The stitching on his hand was surrounded by darkening scabs, some of which Mugen had started to pick at earlier today. Pushing his hand away she tried to listen for whatever it was that he was hearing. Raising both of her eyebrows at him, she couldn't help but think he was crazy. She didn't hear a thing, and she had seen Mugen attempt to hunt before- and it never worked out. As stealthy and quick as he was during a fight, he seemed to be useless when it came to approaching an animal.

"I don't hear anything. Are you sure you're not just losing it?"

"I ain't losing shit. It's this way!" To Fuu's amazement, Mugen dashed off to their right with amazing speed, especially considering they were standing still.

"HEY MUGEN!" Almost in a growl, she followed his path. If it wasn't for the bright red of his haori, and the swaying of disturbed branches and leafs she probably would have lost him. "Stupid Mugen...going off like that...leaving me..who does he think he is...I'm wearing a kimono for heaven's sake.." Every few steps she mumbled, complaining under her breath. She wasn't able to take wide steps like him, and the bottom hem of her kimono kept getting caught. Each time she would be snagged she would stop and carefully remove whatever was impeding her progress, trying not to rip her already soiled clothing. "MUGEN WAIT!" Rushing a few more yards, the green under her feet soon started to turn into wet roots and slimy rocks. Being mindful of where she stepped next, she rested her hands on what seemed to be the last standing tree that lined what could be considered a mountain bog.

Moss attached itself to all surrounding rocks and fallen trees, new and different kinds of grass grew out of the dark and clouded water. Slapping her face, she stopped a mosquito that seemed to be trying to get a taste of her. Not that getting rid of it did much good because soon it seemed she was the epicenter for a swarm of them. Crouching down on a rock at the edge of the water was Mugen, his boney knees were out to the side, he balanced on the balls of his feet with his geta's trapped in his right hand.

"Mugen, what are you doing? The water here is gross, I doubt there's any fish." Flailing her hands around her head, she tried to keep the mosquitoes away from her face but the never let up.

"I ain't here for fish."

Like a cat or some kind of bear, Mugen's hand shot down into the water and emerged with a large soft bodied creature in his hand. There was no mistaking the sickly shade of murky green and beige with dark brown blotches, it was a large toad. Fuu's mind barely began the process of thinking on how many they would need to fill their bellies, and how long it would take to cook them before the toad disappeared into Mugen's mouth.

"MUGEN THAT'S DISGUSTING!"

Turning his head, he looked at her with puffed up cheeks and a long fighting leg sticking out between his lips. His eyes looked undaunted, and with a large crunch he seemed to adjust the toad in his mouth and continued to chew until he was able to fit the other leg in. Covering her mouth, she wanted to gag, and she was suddenly questioning exactly how capable this guy really was. One moment he was like an unstoppable machine, and the next, well..he was like this.

His hands splashed down into the water, quickly picking up another toad of equal size.

"MUGEN! DON'T! PUT IT DOWN!... AT LEAST COOK IT FIRST!"

* * *

Poking at the small dying fire, Fuu brought up some of the dirt and ashes, trying to smother what was left. She felt better now that she managed to eat, it took awhile but she needed some time to get over watching Mugen eat 3 live toads. After making a small fire, and catching one of her own she skewered it and roasted it. Setting down the small stick, she was happy to not see any more flames, and karma seemed to be at work in a bush nearby. Walking closer to the bush, Fuu perched her elbows on her knees and rested her head on her folded hands like a cradle. Placing the white end of a blade of grass in her mouth, she chewed on it. This is what he gets for not being patient, and for his bad attitude he's had since Fukui. She couldn't help but grin as she could hear him grunt and he tried to push again.

"Are you almost done? The sun is going to go down soon, and didn't you say it was going to rain?" Although, she still didn't have a good view of the sky so she really didn't know what time it was anymore but their surroundings seemed to be growing darker. Twirling the blade of grass between her lips, most of the moisture was already gone. "Just push it out already...sheesh."

"Rrr...I'm trying.. just leave me alone." His voice was more like a grunt. He felt like he was going to pop a vessel with the amount of pressure what was building. He had been squatting in the bush for almost an hour now and still there was nothing- but whenever he stood up he could feel his stomach bubble and clench.

"I told you not to eat that frog, especially raw." Spitting out the blade of grass, Fuu grabbed another one and placed the juicy white end in her mouth. She wasn't against eating frogs, but at least she had the patience to cook them first. Mugen went wild and shoved the largest ones he could into his mouth like it was the last piece of meat on the earth. From behind the bush she could see the top of his head, it bobbed every now and then. She could only imagine the expression on his face but he really seemed uncomfortable while they were walking earlier. "If you would eat more greens you wouldn't have this problem you know."

"Unless the next words out of your mouth are a solution..don't talk."

Letting out a large sigh, Fuu reached over and patted him on the head like a child. "There, there. I'll go see if I can find something. IF you deduct 50 dumplings." Somehow, he seemed to tense up even more under the light pressure of her touch. Even if he said no, she would still go get it anyway. Mugen's body was like a never ending powerhouse, his stomach was always able to process everything he sent its way. But not this time, she had never seen him quite like this before. Most times the results of his strange gluttonous behaviour would just wreak havoc on her nose.

"Fuck off."

"I'll take that as a yes. Don't go anywhere, I'll be back!" Running off back in the direction from which they came, there was a particular leafy green she was looking for, wasabina. After catching her toad, and finding where Mugen had perched himself she was sure she saw the light green bundle with yellow flowers along the way. Humming a little tune, she eyed both sides of her self made path as she walked. Everything all looked the same to her, there were a few plants that she could recognize, and they could be used for things like teas and applied to wounds but they didn't have the other supplies to make full use of the ingredients. Chances were that any of these plants would work the same as wasabina but it was something familiar to her and she knew there was no extra risk in eating it. "Maybe this wasn't the way..." Scratching her chin she looked around. She was sure this was the way that the bog was, and somewhere between there and where Mugen was, should be the wasabina.

Crawling out from a long nap in her kimono, Momo perched herself on Fuu's shoulder after pressing her small wet nose to Fuu's cheek, like a good morning kiss.

"Oh, hi Momo-san." Gently petting her furry friend, Fuu looked around trying to see any sign of the bog or the wasabina. "Where do you think it could be?"

"An' where the hell does she think I'll go huh?" Smacking his legs, he tried to wake them up but the tingling sensations started to grow. He had been sitting like this for over an hour and his legs were finally starting to fall asleep. "Seriously.." Lifting his shorts back up he sprawled out on his back, rubbing his disturbed stomach. He had tried long and hard enough with no results, so maybe with time it would all just go away. Or maybe the girl would find something to help. _'She's more likely to get lost...'_ Sitting up, he took a quick peek in the direction that he assumed she went in, there was no sign of her, nor flash of colour from her kimono. "OI, DON'T GET LOST CAUSE I'M NOT LOOKING FOR YA!" The sounds of scared birds flying was enough confirmation that his voice must have carried far enough, so he laid back down and draped an arm over his eyes.

Birds flew out from trees a few rows away from her, startling her, especially since everything had been undisturbed. Resting a hand on her fast beating heart she let out a sigh of relief. _'I wonder what got them in a frenzy..'_ Jumping from Fuu's shoulder, Momo attached herself to a nearby tree. Scurrying up a bit heighter, Fuu watched as Momo wiggled her nose- taking in the scents around.

"What do you smell Momo-san?" With strong and skillful jumps, Momo leapt from tree to tree, away from Fuu. "Momo-san! Not again! Wait!" Once again for the umpteenth time, Fuu dashed off after the flying squirrel. The bushes continued to pull at the hem of her kimono, she could feel the material tug and she pressed on, not wanting to lose sight of the fluffy grey animal. "GWAH!" Falling forwards, she blocked her face from hitting the ground, which was probably one of the few spaces that wasn't being occupied by overgrown shrubs. Bracing herself up on her elbows, she looked back to see the culprit that had tripped her. A large tree root had sprouted through the ground, waiting for unexpected victims like her. Wiggling her toes on her left foot, she knew right away that the strap on her tabi had broke. "Great..just great." Standing up, she took the broken tabi, and inspected where it had broken off. The strap that separated her toes at the front had pulled out of the grove, and she didn't have the time or the knowledge on how to repair it. "What is this?! Seriously!" In a fit, the broken tabi got tossed, rustling a bush as gravity went to work with it.

Muttering some profanities that even surprised herself, she went to retrieve the broken footwear. Even if it was broken, it would be better than nothing. Rustling through the bushes that she thought it went in, she pushed some yellow flowers out of the way. "Way to keep your cool Fuu.." Grabbing the tabi, Fuu stopped for awhile, looking at the yellow flower and the green ruffled leafs. "AH HA, FOUND YOU!" Inspecting the leafs, she rustled about until she found the ones darker in colour, and that had lost their yellow flowers, picking a few large leafs she had almost forgotten about the critter that had lead her this way. "Momo-san! Where did you go? Momo-san!"

A blur going from one tree to another caught her attention, but it seemed to be going up an incline on the mountain. Today they had managed to fight a rather level area for walking, and her legs were thankful for that but she didn't want to leave Momo here. Slipping the broken tabi around her wrist, and the wasabina leafs in her obi, Fuu bolted after the blur she assumed was Momo.

"Momo-san! Please...wait!" Trying to catch her breath, Fuu stopped momentarily. Looking at the small critter on the tree in front of her, everything seemed to have gotten darker in the blink of an eye- not able to make out the features, but the big beady eyes were enough for her to know it was her furry companion. "Where...are..you going?" Each word was mistake as it kept her from bringing in the air that her body ached for.

Lungs burning and sweat dropping down her forehead, she really just wished Momo would cooperate. Twisting her hair up, she pulled out the hair stick that had been decorating her obi since the other night. The jade bead hanging from the end swayed as she found the right placement to keep her hair from unraveling. Just as she finished, Momo continued on. Fuu was quick to follow, and soon the incline levelled out once again. With one finale leap, Momo began to scurry across the ground and the trees seemed to disappear, finally revealing the sky above.

The sun had almost set completely, and the moon and stars were no where to be seen because of the dark cloud coverage. With a tremendous _**boom,**_ the air seemed to vibrate with the skies warning of what was to come.

The thunder had thrown Fuu off for a moment, and she stumbled to the ground when Momo had abruptly stopped. Falling to the ground once again, Fuu's face was next to Momo, almost touching the soft fur with the skin of her cheek. "Aya Momo-san...One of these days I won't be able to find you, and then what-" Blinking a few times, Fuu scurried up onto her hands and knees, crawling closer to get a better look at what she thought she saw. She went as far as the ground would allow her as there was a sudden drop off a few inches away from the tips of her fingers. Down below the drop off, and a short walk away there was a distinct square shape erecting out of the ground. _'_ "A hut! Momo-san, you're amazing!"

She was elated, a place to sleep! From where she was she couldn't see any light from a fire or lantern, which meant it had probably been long forgotten about. The sky released another ear deafening boom, and without a moments delay, a droplet of water caught Fuu on the tip of her nose.

"Huh?" Bringing a hand up, she wiped the droplet off, looking up to the sky. By the time her eyes adjusted to the darkened surroundings above, large heavy drops cast down upon her. There was no build up or mercy shown by the rain. Each drop hit her body hard, like the sky had been holding it, waiting for the right moment to release. "Momo-san, hurry out of the rain!" Opening up her kimono for the squirrel, she waited while hunching her shoulder and ducking her head. But Momo never came, she was gone, again. Gritting her teeth, she wanted to curse Momo for leaving again. Had she gone down to the hut? Did she find a tree with a snack in it? There was no telling for sure, but either way, Fuu needed to find her and to find Mugen to show him the hut.

Standing back up, she placed her right foot down first and brushed off her kimono as she planted her left foot down as well. But haven forgotten about the tabi that was hanging off of her wrist instead of her foot, there as a noticeable height difference between the legs now, causing Fuu to stumble backwards.

A weightless sensation overtook her, and her stomach did a flip when her bare foot slipped on the grass along the edge of the drop off. It was a feeling she had felt before, when she had held onto a small root over a river. But there was no river here, nothing to ease the fall. Her widened doe like eyes seemed to slow everything down for her as what was once level with her, soon rose above.

* * *

Rubbing his stomach, the bubbling and churning still hadn't let up. Raising a knee off the ground, he took a few gambles, with light pushes, it seemed to eased up some of the pressure. It wasn't exactly what he was hoping for but it was progress. Moving his arm from over his eyes he stared up at the trees that blocked his view from the sky. Everything already looked darker, maybe he had been lying there longer than he thought- it felt like only a few minutes but with the pain in his gut it was hard to concentrate on anything else. Slowly sitting back up, he lounged on the palms of his hands with his arms extended out behind him.

"How long is she gonna be?" Looking off in the same direction as earlier, his eyes had to adjust more to the lighting, or lack of. It was hard to separate the branches and bushes from one another as they seemed to blend into the same dark blues and greys. "For fuck sakes.."

Standing up, he swayed a bit as everything seemed to be spinning and flipping around him. Cranking his neck to the side, he allowed his shoulders and arms to slump down, almost dropping Fuu's bag but catching it. "Alright brat..what kind of shit show do you have yourself in this time huh?"

Not quite running, but he went looking with long fast strides. His eyes were quickly adjusting to the darkened surroundings, taking in the details of broken and slumped branches, leafs, everything. He had tracked skillful individuals with ease before, and Fuu was anything but skillful. She was clumsy, and loud. It wouldn't take long to follow whatever trail she left behind. Being mindful of a particularly large root sticking out of the ground, he stepped over it. It took but a moment for him to look at the grass beneath his passing feet and see how it was pressed down in a large blob. _'The girl is still a damn klutz.'._ Stepping down on a bush with yellow flowers, even Mugen knew what they were.

 _'If you would eat more greens you wouldn't have this problem you know.'_

"Just cause you say so don't mean I'm gonna listen." Clenching his jaw, his stomach did another flop and squelched. He could feel a cold sweat rush over him and so he found himself chewing on a large green leaf that was like a dull wasabi. His taste buds hated him but he hoped his stomach would be thanking him soon. His large legs easily began to go up the incline, following the uneven foot trail that was left by Fuu.

 _ **BOOM**_

He knew it was only a matter of time before it started to rain. He could feel it, smell it, all day. He expected it to happen earlier, but of course they would have the shit luck of it happening to them just as night was fading in. With the way the heat was, and with the thunder, they were in for quite the storm tonight. He could sleep out in the rain, hell he could sleep out in a snow storm and he knew he would be okay, and even if he did get sick he wouldn't care. But Fuu was another story.

 _ **BOOM**_

Large heavy drops fell from the sky like a sheet being laid down. In an instant he was wet- and damn it felt good. He had been so hot and sticky the last while, and even his stench was bothering him too. When Fuu mentioned it earlier he really couldn't argue with her on how bad he was which was why he resorted to calling her a monkey. Whenever she had her hair pulled back and she puffed out her cheeks she looked like one, at least 3 years ago she did. Rolling his eyes, it was an automatic response at this point. Whenever she puffed out her cheeks it was because he apparently said or did something that she didn't like. So of course, in response to that he would just shrug and roll his eyes at her, because why the hell should he care what she says or thinks?

 _'I shouldn't, and I don't.'_

Out from the darkness, a small creature lunged at him, which almost caused him to whip out his blade until he recognized the small soaked creature clinging to his shirt.

"-An what the hell are you doing here without the girl?"

Blinking it's large animated eyes, all of its whiskers twitched. Scurrying around Mugen's side, the squirrel tried to find refuge from the rain until his haori. _'At least I know I'm getting close'_

Reaching the top of the incline, he saw the one shred of colour that was left in the darkness of the mountain. Pink and yellow, stumbling backwards, away from him, and being pulled down by gravity.

"FUU!"

* * *

A tight grip squeezed her wrist and just like that, the weightless sensation was gone. Opening her eyes that she hadn't realized she shut, she looked up through the heavy rainfall. There was no stopping the water drops from blurring her vision but she could see it clearly, her saving grace- red.

"M-Mugen!"

His right hand tightly gripped onto her, and most of his upper body was hanging over the ledge as well but somehow he was keeping his balance.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!"

"OI OI! Never mind that, just pull me up!" Holding her free hand up, it was instantly met with his. Desperately holding on his hand, the rough lines of the stitches and scabs dug into her cold wet skin. Little by little she could feel herself being tugged higher and higher until she was finally on level ground. She hadn't realized how scared she actually was until she realized her legs were shaky and she was unable to stand up. Sitting on the ground, Mugen seemed out of breath, having his legs sprawled out on either side of Fuu, she was trapped by her companion. A cliff behind her, his legs on each side, and him in front. Letting go of his hand, she wanted to show him the hut, even though it was dark he might be able to spot it through all the rain- but he didn't loosen his grip. "Mugen-"

"Do you have some kind of death wish!? What the hell were you doing?!" The heavy drops continued to fall down on them, stinging the skin each time they did- both of their bodies were cold making each raindrop like a whip. His eyes bore into her with a new kind of intensity. Holding her wrist, he felt how boney it really was, he felt like he could snap it with just a bit more pressure. Hell, maybe if he did do it she wouldn't go wandering like this. "Why'd you come this far huh?!"

"I came to find you some-"

"-Don't be worrying about me so damn much! I ain't your responsibility-" Pulling her hand and wrist, she was tugged closer to him, practically pressing her into him. "-worry about yourself for once!"

She was so close to him, she wasn't exactly sure where to look. At first his eyes were magnetic, pulling her gaze directly to them, but it her stomach started to twist and knot- maybe she was starting to react to the frog she ate earlier. It was strange having Mugen look at her like that so she managed to pull her eyes from his, looking everywhere but there. Creased formed on his forehead from his brows being pushed so tightly together, his lips were in a defined frown. Every feature of him seemed undaunted by the drops that caressed every bump and crease of his face.

"There's a hut. Down there. That's why I was here." Somehow her eyes got pulled back to his, her peripheral vision saw his brows and lips relax.

"Why didn't you say so, idiot."

* * *

Pushing a large wooden table out of the way, it crashed to the ground. But instead of the usual thud, it squelched under the mud made by the rain. The door easily opened, which was a good sign, and an unpleasant odor didn't travel out from within. The two of them didn't waste much time getting in, but it was so dark they weren't able to make out anything on the inside. After fumbling around, Mugen managed to scrape off the mud from his geta's and dried them off on something which made him able to create a spark on the fire pit in the center of the room. Unfortunately, Fuu was the one who found it because she tripped over the stack of wood that was left piled neatly in it- but it was convenient for the two of them.

Once the spark finally took to the wood, it didn't take long until it grew into a steady flame- lighting up the room. It was smaller inside that she had thought it would be. It was almost a perfect square, except the floor by the door was almost ground level, and everything else was raised up about a foot or two- most likely an attempt at keeping water or bugs away. There were hardly any cobwebs in the corners, and there wasn't anything left except a small pile of wood in the corner, some posts that were most likely used for hanging pots and pans and a white sheet draped over the only window. Momo, scurried out from under Mugen's clothing and curled up into a small ball on the window ledge.

"Fwah! What are you doing Mugen?!" Covering her eyes, Fuu turned her back to him.

"Hah? What's it look like?" Dropping his haori and shirt on the ground he already felt warmer. They were beyond soaked and they probably wouldn't be dried by morning unless they managed to hang them up over the fire. Running his fingers through his wet tangled locks, he dipped his nose into one of his pits- to his surprise he didn't stink so much anymore because of the rain. "Unless ya want to get hypodermia, strip."

"Hypodermia? I think you mean-" Without thinking much about it, she turned around just as he began to lower his shorts. "-hypothermia.." She could see the water dripping from his hair still, and from the bottom hem of his shorts. The water from his hair dripped down onto his chest, making it's way over the narrow lines between his muscles, and eventually brining her eyes down as it travelled past his belly button. His thumbs were hooked in the front of his waist band, bringing them low on his hips- revealing his prominent pelvic bones. He didn't seem to notice where her eyes fell but shaking her head, she quickly snapped around again. "Don't take your pants off! You pervert!"

"If ya don't like it, then don't look."

She could hear his soaked shorts drop to the ground, along with a undertone snicker.

"Trust me, I won't look! But what's going to keep you from looking at me huh? I don't want you to try anything weird."

"Trust me-" Pulling the white sheet from the window, he tossed it over Fuu, covering most of her. "-I'm not interested in flat chested kids."

 _'I'll show you who's flat chested and who's not!'_ Gritting her teeth, she pulled the sheet off of her. Keeping her eyes shut, she tossed it back at Mugen, or at least where she thought he was. "Cover yourself first, and your eyes!" Holding her hands in front of her chest she fidgeted. She was nervous, she knew Mugen wasn't interested in her, and she wasn't interested in him but she didn't want to take any chances at being seen. "I-I don't want you to see me, or anything.."

"You're a real pain in my ass." Kicking his wet clothes on the lower part by the door, he sat down, letting the sheet cover himself completely. "I'm covered, now hurry up before I decide to take it off."

Looking over her shoulder, she was happy to see he was telling the truth. He was sitting close to the fire, covered by the sheet like a little ghost. "-And when I'm done you need to keep your eyes closed so I can take the sheet back, got it?"

"-Got it."

"Fine.." Keeping her back to him, she took a deep breath. Her numb fingers started undoing her bright yellow obi, which seemed dulled by the water it had absorbed. She really was soaked from head to toe- her hair felt heavy, and it hard started to unravel from the quick style she had done on the way to find Momo. Beneath her feet was a puddle that was only getting bigger by the moment. Pulling the obi off from around her tiny waist, she glanced over at the white bump that was Mugen. _'He really can't see anything...can he?'_

The fire was starting to thaw his ice cold skin. He kept his arms crossed and stuck his hands under his pits, trying to warm them. And with his legs crossed he had parts of his feet tucked under his rear, also in an attempt at warming them- but by doing so, his personal parts were exposed to the cool night air. Keeping his eyes closed, he was trying to concentrate on getting warm. _'What in the hell is she so worried about...not like I haven't seen her naked before..'_ He wanted to say that to her, but maybe she was pushing it to the back of her mind. After all, it was a little fuzzy for him too. He was so full of rage at the time that everything other than her face and the dirty bastard behind her was a blur. Everything was wide open and exposed to him but damn, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't remember a damn thing about her body. _'Should have killed that guy slower...'_ The sound of water splashing against the floor pulled Mugen's eyes open, where he seemed to freeze stiff. He could see her. He could see through this dirty, good for nothing sheet.

Her shoulders exposed to him. She seemed hesitant to fully peel off the two layers of her outfit. Slowly, it lowered, showing more and more of her arms and back- but it wasn't bare. Her chest bindings wrapped tightly around a section of her skin, but it was translucent, showing bits of what hid beneath. Seeing her hand reach over her shoulder, her delicate fingers traced the stitching of her flesh. A reminder of why he was here in the first place. Her finger ran along the slowly healing bumps, dropping the kimono even more.

"Are ya done? Tired of waiting here." Swallowing the saliva that had built up, he knew she wasn't done. So why was he trying to hurry her?

"I have more layers than you! And I'm not just going to let my clothes soak on the floor. I'll wring them out and hang them."

"Just hurry." His eyes followed the centre line of her back. She was slender, a petite Japanese woman, but this journey seemed to be toning her frame- or maybe she was always like that? He wasn't too sure but, he wasn't opposed to looking- as long as she didn't know.

Her shoulders rose up and down, she was taking a few deep breaths. _'She's nervous...how stupid..'_ This was one reason why he liked more developed and experienced women. During something like this they would know exactly what to do to get his gears turning. They know how to sway their hips, arch their backs and stick their tits up. They know how to work a damn room and every man in it. Sure, virgins had their perks, they felt great but they were always so emotional. _'Wait..scratch that...'_ Clicking his tongue, he forgot the minor detail that most virgins he had the "pleasure" of taking hadn't always given their consent, which resulted in messy tears and some kind of sob story. Pulling his bottom lips into his mouth he bit it and licked it before letting it go. He didn't have the time to worry about that shit, it was in the past and this was happening now.

Her kimono had been worked lower and lower, and folded extremely low on her hips but was still managing to hold on. Tugging at the wet band at her chest, he watched intensively as it made it's away from her front, to the back, and back to the front over and over again as it was untied. The flesh of her back was finally exposed, and apart from the mark on her shoulder, it was flawless. The odd drop dripped down from her hair and down the line of her back. Moving her arms, she hung up the long thin material on a knob on the wall. He felt his jaw almost drop when he got a side view of what she had been hiding under the wrap this entire time. He knew that her chest had grown, and that she had filled out compared to three years ago, or perhaps it was because he hadn't seen a naked broad in a long time, but damn. From the nook from under her arm, there it was, a very noticeable and very distinguished crescent. Without seeing it face on, he knew that they were perky, they didn't hang or sag low like some he had seen.

Taking in a shaky breath from his nose, a part of him that felt cold due to being exposed was suddenly feeling very hot. _'For fuck sakes...this is the girl we're looking at..loud, noisy, stupid as fuck..'_ But he wanted to see more. He wanted her to turn around so he could see it all head on. Even the idea of _'maybe she wouldn't be so scared of men if she just had sex already-'_ crossed his mind. But he had to push that back to the dark pits of his mind where he would never go digging around in. _'What the hell?'_ Lost in his delusional thoughts, he stopped processing what was happening in front of him, and now there she was, the back side of her body fully exposed to him and she wringed the water out of the two layers of her kimono.

Her legs weren't overly long, but that was because she was short, but they were trim and were the perfect base for the perfectly shaped peach at the top of them. _'Fuck...'_ She was hiding some real treasures under that kimono. Her never would have imagined that her ass was so perfectly shaped. Each cheek was perfectly plump, and well rounded. He always considered himself a breast man, but now he was suddenly appreciating the ass. After hanging her kimono layers up, the damn tempest pulled the hair stick from her hair and shook her head until it fully unraveled, trailing itself down her back. And just like the other night, he had the urged to wrap his hand in it, and pull.

There was so much he wanted to do. But that's only because he had been deprived. He hadn't gotten any action in such a long time, his mind was playing tricks on him, making him see things differently than he normally would. At least..that's what he kept telling himself, maybe seeing her face would make him feel differently, because after all, it was her. And maybe her tits weren't as good as they seemed from the side, maybe she had huge dark nipples, or maybe they were uneven. He needed to know, he needed to see.

 _'Turn around..turn around and look at me."_ Biting his lip again, his hand had left the warmth of his arm pit and had now travelled down his body to find a throbbing protruding member. Even is own touch made his breath hitch- it had been over two weeks since he had done this himself, and damn it, he was going to get some relief.

Turning herself around, her arms closed in on her chest, pressing her breasts against them in an attempt at hiding them. Her knees pressed tightly together, shifting her legs in an attempt at hiding her most sacred of places. "I'm taking the sheet back now, close your eyes."

 _'For fuck sakes..put your damn arms down!'_ Clearing his throat, his hand below never stopped. His slowly movements where barely keeping him contained, especially after seeing the well trimmed curls between her legs. She had mentioned that the spa or what ever dumb shit it was had removed some hair, but in all honestly he thought it was just her legs, not this. He had seen it done once before, and that woman was damn expensive but it was worth every cent. The only downfall of finally getting a full view was that there were still fading bruises trailing up her legs. They varied from large in size to the size of finger tips. They were a sickly yellow, meaning they were going to be fully faded in a few more days, but it was enough to remind him that she wasn't exactly a play thing. "I don't think ya want to do that. Cause I ain't gonna close my eyes and I ain't gonna be hiding myself."

"W-what, why?!"

"Cause you took too damn long and now I'm warm under here."

"Not fair, I'm cold Mugen!" Even under her own touch she could feel how cold she was, it was like ice on ice. Her body was shaking beyond her control, making her stomach tighten like she was going to be sick. "P-Please Mugen!" Her teeth were chattering, making her stammer her words.

"No." Gripping a bit tighter, he relished the phrase _'P-Please Mugen!'._ It shook him, revving up his engine even more.

"What if someone walks in?! I don't want some stranger seeing my naked body. Even if you don't think so, I am a very attractive young woman." Curling herself in ball, she balanced on the balls of her feet and hugged her legs to her chest. "I'm s-s-so cold!"

"Ya know.." Trying to remain composed in his voice, he had to slow his motions, not to give away what he was doing. He couldn't take the possible bragging, or the outburst from her. She would either freak out and call him pervert until the day one of them died or else her ego would inflate and she would talk about how attractive she thinks she is (which from what he could see, he really didn't want to argue that, but no way he would ever let her know). "You keep talking about how attractive you are."

"Ya? And?"

"Prove it."

"Prove it?"

"Show me something."

"What?! No! My face is all the proof you need." Hugging her knees tighter, she puffed out her cheeks. "Besides, if I did you wouldn't be able to resist me, and you would probably do something perverted." Letting out a loud and exaggerated sigh she rested her chin on the tops of her knees, sitting herself down on her rump. "It really _is_ hard to be a woman with so much sex appeal." Internally she was laughing at herself, this was the kind of ridiculous thing she would have said a few years ago.

"A good face ain't shit unless you got something else to offer. I've seen guys with nice faces but I ain't gonna fuck them." Pulling the sheet off his head, it cascaded down his body, covering his legs and his hand currently at work.

She was taken back by suddenly being in clear view of him. Her arms tightened even more and her heels shuffled back closer to her body making herself into a solid ball. "MUGEN DON'T LOOK! CLOSE YOUR EYES!"

"Fuckin' make me. Don't think I didn't see you looking at me earlier. It's my turn don't ya think?"

"No no no, a thousand times no!"

Clicking his tongue, he didn't have time to think about what he was saying. "I bet if I was that bastard Jin you wouldn't be saying no."

"Wha...what the heck is that supposed to mean! I especially wouldn't show Jin!" Although taken back by what he was saying she wasn't lying. When you're bored and doing the same thing day after day your mind tends to wander. Various situations crossed her mind years ago, one of them being if one of her ex-bodyguards stumbled upon her in the bath at any point. Something deep down told her that Jin would have no reaction, that he would look and say _"Hn..."_ before turning away with no expression on his face. Something like that would just ruin a girl's self esteem, and she didn't want Mugen to ever see her because her self esteem would be torn into a million pieces because she knew she was nothing like the women she saw him gawking at. Their tits were almost bigger than her head, and surely they had some tricks up their sleeves, but she was clueless. Feeling her brow twitch and her body still shivering her head snapped up at Mugen, making firm eye contact with him. "Fine!"

"Fine?" He was surprised. Was she actually agreeing to it?

"I'll sleep without the sheet then. If I get sick it's because of you!" Looking at the floor and at herself curled up she was trying to figure out a way to lay down without exposing herself to him. Even if she laid with her back to him, he would be able to see her rear end.

"Stop being so god damn passive! Didn't I just tell you to worry about yourself more?! You stupid bitch-"

"-Hey! What?! "

The white sheet was suddenly tossed at her, blocking her vision and she was pushed onto her back. A favourable warmth pressed itself to her from above the sheet, it was slowly melting the icy feel of her skin. Moving the sheet off from her face, she wish she would have kept it covered. Hovering above her, with two arms on either side of her head was Mugen. His knee separated her legs and the other knee was planted firmly on the other side. The sheet was bunched between her legs and pushed up because of the intrusion of his knee, the rest of it was comfortably covering her upper body, she gripped it tightly over her chest.

"Why the hell do you see everything so black and white huh? You worry about the things you shouldn't! If you're hungry I can take care of that, if you're cold I'll make you a god damn fire!" Punching the ground next to her head, she didn't even flinch. "It's stuff like being aware of your god damn surroundings! You're so damn oblivious to everything around you that you walk around like a fucking idiot with her head up in the clouds! You act like everyone is nice and innocent and caring like you, but they ain't! This world is full of dirty, slimy people and places. Open your god damn eyes!" Looking from her eyes he eyed her barely covered form below. "You were even going to sleep naked for fuck sakes! Stand up for yourself and don't give in so easily! I'm one of those dirty, slimy, people!" Narrowing his eyes he locked on hers, while resting back on his knees he grabbed her hands from her chest, slamming them onto the ground above her head. The sheet still covered everything but it draped over her now obvious curves.

Her stomach was in knots, it felt similar to before when she was weightless. She knew he was saying something but her mind just couldn't pay attention. A few words got through to her but it washed away. Just like before, when he had pulled her up from falling, she couldn't pull away from his gaze. Mugen had seemed different lately, he didn't seem as carefree or humorous. Sure at times he would make a remark, wait for her to respond and then they would have a little back and forth. But usually, when she would get in trouble he would call her useless, pick apart every detail of her, and talk about how she would never survive on her own with a smug look on his face- half joking of course but there was always truth to his words. However, this time she couldn't sense any humour in what he was saying, even his face didn't have "smug" written on it. The grip on her wrists didn't hurt, but his eyes bore down onto her made her feel like she would melt, and his knee between her legs didn't go unnoticed. If it was any one else looming over her she would surely be frightened or scared, but despite the lack of clothing and space, she wasn't worried- she was angry at what he was implying.

"You make no sense Mugen! You're the one that said to strip so we wouldn't get hypothermia! And you're the one that wouldn't give the sheet back to me!" Finally attempting to squirm away from him, her hands and wrists that were pressed to the floor didn't budge at all. Arching her back and trying to twist around, heat rushed to her face and down below when his knee rubbed against her. Stopping her abrupt movements, a chill pricked at her now exposed chest.

Switching from two hands, Mugen fit both of her wrists into one. He could feel his still excited appendage twitch at the sight. He was somewhere between impressed and pissed off. How the hell could she look like that? Why did she look like this? Why, of all people did this girl seem to be without a flaw on her body, other than the marks left there by the son of a bitch two weeks back. Unlike her legs, her abdomen and her chest were milky white and seemed to be untouched- or rather if they were touched, it was with restraint. The two exposed mounds were perfectly symmetrical, they stayed perfectly in place, not sinking to her sides because of gravity or weight. Each was adorned with the tiniest pink bud- hardened from the chill of the air.

"D-Don't look! Pervert! Let go!"

Fidgeting his free fingers of his right hand, he wanted to touch her. He wanted to know what kind of face she would make, what kind of sounds would escape her, and how she tasted. Lowering himself down, he was no longer held up by his knees, but his legs extended down past hers, pressing every inch of him on her. Her chest pressed against his, her one leg was trapped between his and he pressed against her thigh. His right hand fell into a fist by her head as he leaned down on his forearm. "I wasn't brought up well, If I see something interesting, something I want, I get greedy and I will take it." His words were like a growl next to her ear, his head pressed down on the floor boards and the whiskers of his chin scratched at her shoulder. "But-" whipping himself back up, he tossed the edge of the sheet back onto her, covering up her luscious breasts. "Let that be your one and only warning. Fuckin' pay attention and don't be so damn naive."

Removing himself completely from her, it took every ounce of will power he had to not continue on. Parts of his mind were screaming at him, cursing him and begging him to go back, that she despite her protests he could have done it. But it had nothing to do with consent or lack of. The problem was that it was her. It was Fuu. His pride and his common sense told him it was a bad idea, that nothing good would come from it. He was only acting this way because he really needed to get laid, so his body was reacting to anything close to a real female body. Nodding to himself, he was convinced once again that that was the reason he was acting this way. Plopping himself down as far away from her as possible he laid down with his back facing her and the fire. He stared at the wooden planks of the wall, waiting for his body to calm down.

Clinging to the materials on her chest, her heart felt like it was about to explode. Her blood was rushing through her so fast that it felt like it was going to burst out of her veins. Her body felt strange, even her mind was in a frenzy and she didn't know what to make of it. Squeezing her legs together, she tried to ease a throbbing sensation down below but it only seemed to make it worse, jolting her body as the pressure was added. She quickly tried to relax her legs, but beyond that, it felt wet and sticky, it made her stomach twist even more, remembering the last time it happened. That pig had touched her, humiliated her, and her body reacted to it, but not like this. She didn't feel this strange that night. Mugen hadn't even touched her and yet this was happening- was this normal? Everything he was saying and doing confused her even more. Fixing the sheet to cover as much as her as possible, she curled up as tightly as she could, trying to calm herself so she would be able to sleep.

Leaving them alone to their imaginations, expectations and disappointed urges that neither of them wanted to admit to themselves or each other, the pounding rain and crackling fire tried to lull them to sleep.


	11. Chapter 10 -Drunken Actions & Sober Eyes

**RapMonQueen94-** Never worry about your reviews being "too short"! Every review I get is absolutely amazing, and I appreciate every single one I receive. Even if it is just a "Good job!", I treat it the same as I paragraph. I'm really happy with your continuous support for my story, and I am elated that you feel so strongly about my characterization. :)

 **therp:** I spoil you guys? Haha, maybe? I write whatever gets my heart thumping and makes me all giddy. I'm so happy you're still following my story and continually reviewing. :) I'm a fan of lemons too so I originally planned on having quite a bit in this, but I think I'm going to keep it as a slow burn.

 **Guest:** Thank you for reading the story! I'm glad you liked my side story which brought you here. :)

 **UntypicalVero:** I saw your review last minute before I posted this. Thank you for the review, and I am feeling assured in my characterization once again. This chapter may not be up to parr with the others, but please hold on. :)

 ***No I don't comment/reply to all reviews, but I do sometimes. Wanna fight 'bout it?***

 **I would like to take the time to apologize about my horrible mistake, I messed up on certain details of Japan's geography (with Fukui). I acknowledge my mistake, and I will try harder with my research. Lots of scene changes in this one again, and lots of talking. I really want to wrap up this story in 5 or 6 Chapters, I wanted this to be 10-12 Chapters originally, but of course, I've included too much and need to see it through! There isn't a lot of progress with this chapter, there were two things that needed to happen (I'll tell you what one of them is at the end of the chapter), so the rest is really just filler. I've had a horrible week, my garage door broke on top of my brand new SUV (glass everywhere, and my husband is gone for another week and he has no cell service at work so I cried pretty hard when it happened). So I have not been in the writing mood and I think this chapter has suffered because of it. If there are any errors please let me know and I will fix them ASAP.**

 **Chapter 10 - Drunken Actions, and Sober Eyes**

* * *

Biting down on the stick, Fuu pulled it out the side, leaving only the delicious dumplings in her mouth. Her taste buds, and her stomach all raved and applauded at the sensation. It had been far too long since she had proper food- not that her mother would have agreed that 5 orders of dumplings was a proper meal. But it was cheap, it was fast, and man, it was delicious. She could have bought more food, or at least got a few bowls of rice to go with it all but she wanted to save her money, but Mugen insisted that she buy him some food, which was 8 orders of dumplings to himself. If it wasn't one thing (food), then it was another (lodgings or Mugen), and she didn't want to be caught in a sticky situation later just because she let her stomach get the better of her.

It had been two days since they made it out of the mountain, and about a day and a half since they found this road. Her body still ached from all of the hiking, and walking down hill she had to do. Finally being able to walk on flat ground was like a godsend. They still had yet to find any signs or villages at that, but they were fortunate enough to find this small dive. Most likely set up to help lost travellers such as themselves, which would mean they should be nearing a village or town soon. The dive wasn't much to look at, on the inside there was only enough room for four tables, but Fuu and Mugen decided to sit out on the small wooden benches that were set up outside along the road.

Biting off the last dumpling from the third stick, Fuu rustled around in her bag until she found her note pad. She made sure to mark down the 40 dumplings from Mugen's order to put against her "dumpling debt".

"What's that?" Cleaning off his last two sticks at once, Mugen's cheeks puffed out like Momo's as he somehow managed to chew the 10 dumplings.

"What's it look like? Clearing off some of my debt."

"Ya bhuh hath too mush, eigh noh orhy." His lips pressed tightly together, he continued to chew, trying not to let anything escape.

"Nuh uh! 8 orders, that's 5 dumplings on each stick, so that's 40 dumplings total. 225, minus 40, is 185."

Swallowing half of what he stuffed in his mouth, Mugen snaked his arm around Fuu's back, grabbing the note pad from her. "Like hell it is. Why is it at 225? Should be higher than that, are ya trying to cheat me?"

"Mugen!" Trying to pull the notepad from him, her voice was once again muffled by his large hand grabbing her entire face. It was like a vice grip, what was this, the third time he's done this to her? No matter how hard she would pull way, or shake her head, he wouldn't let go until he wanted too.

"The fuck? Why you taking off fifty here?" A little bit of drool fell out from the corner of his mouth, being pushed out because of the overbearing lump of half chewed food.

Grabbing his wrist with both of her hands, she still wasn't able to pry off his hand.

"If I let go, you better fucking fix this." Forcing her head to nod he tried to laugh but consequently, a piece of food went down the wrong tube- resulting in a large coughing fit and him letting go of her face.

While he struggled, Fuu quickly grabbed back her note pad and shoved her cup of water at him. "That's what you get for eating like an idiot. And I earned the fifty dumplings off, fair and square. Remember I went out to get you the wasabina because you were constipated!"

Hitting his chest a few times and taking in some water, his coughing finally stopped and he swallowed the last bits of food he had. "-Are you stupid? What the hell ended up happening? I ended up saving your ass again, so maybe you should be adding another fifty."

"I-it's the thought that counts Mugen!"

"Ya well, thought denied!"

Grumbling to herself, Fuu added the fifty back on, making her total 235. He did have a point, she went off on her own and he ended up saving her, again. Somehow he always knew when she needed him, even before she knew herself. In the end, she didn't even get to give him the wasabina. It must have fell out of her obi when she slipped and fell. Thinking about anything to do with their time in the mountains gave her goose flesh and made her stomach uneasy. Touching her forehead, she felt hotter than usually, but she had been feeling that way since the night at the shack- maybe her body was trying to fight off a cold brought on from the rain.

* * *

 _Eyes slowly creeping open, Fuu's body shivered at the realization that the fire had died out and the air was unfavorably cold. Smacking her tongue around a bit, she was really thirsty, but that could wait. She was still incredibly tired, the night had been long and intense. Her mind couldn't seem to shut off, and the floor seemed harder than the ground, making it almost impossible for her to get comfortable. Maybe if she would have turned around she could have tried to find a better position but she didn't want to face Mugen. She had spent most of the night cursing him internally, and even when she did manage to push past her obvious frustrations with him, whenever she closed her eyes all she would see was him hovering over her._

 _Slowly sitting up, her muscles ached from the hike through the mountain, and from her hard bed that was the floor. Scooting over to where her clothing was hanging, she made sure not to unwrap herself from the shell she had made with the sheet. Even though it was thin, it was much warmer under it than being exposed in the air. Feeling the material of both layers of her kimono, she was disappointed, but not surprised, that they were both still wet._

 _Pouting her lip, she knew she and Mugen couldn't just sit around like this all day. He might be comfortable in the nude, but she sure wasn't- at least not with him around._

 _Touching the thin band that was her chest binding, it was still slightly damp but it wasn't out of the question. She took a peek over her shoulder, seeing Mugen's back was still facing her she quickly folded the sheet down and wrapped up her chest up nice and tight. The material was cold and uncomfortable against her skin, making her stiff when it first touched her, but maybe it a few hours it would be better. But now...what should she do about Mugen? He had dropped his clothes on the floor without wringing them out, if her clothes weren't ready then his definitely weren't anywhere close to being dry._

 _Feeling the white layer of her kimono again, it was definitely wetter than she would like, but it was better than the dusty pink layer. Fully shedding the warm sheet, Fuu fastened the white layer to hang from her hips, covering her lower half. Once it dried more she would wear it properly._

 _Creeping up, close to the fire pit and Mugen's back, Fuu covered him with the sheet. She didn't bother to adjust it when it left his feet hanging out and covered his head, he was a "grown" man, if he didn't like it then he could fix it. Looking at his now covered body, she found it hard to believe that he actually slept like that. She wasn't sure if it was him being dependable, or just plain stupid. It was obvious that in this kind of situation it would be crossing the line to sleep together to share in the warmth that the sheet provided- but it was also dangerous to sleep naked after being rained on._

 _"You're unbelievable.." Puffing out her cheeks, she exhaled, smacking her lips together like a horse._

 _"Ya don't have to tell me, I already know that." Tucking his feet under the sheet, Mugen pulled his head out from under, turning to face Fuu and the extinguished fire. "It's fucking cold.." Sniffling, his nostril sucked back in some snot that had dripped out._

 _"Oh? You're awake?"_

 _"Ya, woke up when you started stripping again." His eyes still remained closed, and he closed himself into and even tighter ball._

 _Crossing her arms over her chest, she knew she shouldn't have changed like that, he wasn't snoring but she assumed he was still sleeping. "Pervert."_

 _"Trust me, there ain't anything to look at, learned that much last nigh-"_

 _"KYA DON"T EVEN SAY IT!" Putting a finger in each ear, Fuu blocked out whatever he was saying. When she saw his mouth stopped moving, she unplugged her ears. His eyes were finally open, and they shared in a tension filled glare- waiting for one of them to make the next move. It was like an imaginary show down, both of them facing off- but who would be the first to draw their blade? Who would fall?_

 _"You're tit-less."_

 _"Why you-" Without hesitation, Fuu reached her leg over the fire pit and stomped on Mugen repeatedly. "-jerk!"_

 _"Ow! Knock it off!" She kicked harder than she hit that's for sure. Her boney heel hit him once on his arm and then she managed to weasel her way to his ribs. "Fuck, you brat!" He could have easily grabbed her foot, tripping her or something but the warmth was already building up under the sheet he was cucooning himself in._

 _Practically using him as a stepping stone, Fuu hoisted herself on top and over him, reaching the window where Momo was still sleeping. "Sheesh, you're a real pain in my neck."_

 _"-And you're a pain in my ass."_

 _"Yea, yea, whatever." Using her tanto as a stick, Fuu went up on her tippy toes and pushed the bottom of the window, opening it so she could take a peek outside._

 _The world seemed grey, and very very damp. Rain was still falling, although not as hard as yesterday, it was a steady pace. She hadn't paid enough attention to the "pitter patter" of the drops on the roof above her to clue in to the current weather conditions. Taking in the fresh air, the cool, crisp bite of rain nipped at her senses- maybe this is what Mugen smelt before it rained? He always just claimed "he knew", and freakisly enough, he was always right. Letting out a large sigh, Fuu closed the window and planted her feet back down on the ground._

 _"-Looks like we'll be here for awhile." Using Mugen for a stepping stone again, she stepped over the dead fire pit with ease and plopped down where she was when she first woke up._

 _The two of them didn't talk much that entire day, they both slept most of the day away-enjoying the absolute nothingness of their agenda. It did take Mugen awhile to munster up the energy to start a fire again but when he did, they were able to maintain it until the next day when they finally got up to leave. By then, the rain had stopped, and Fuu's clothes were fully dried. Mugen's where still slightly damp but that was because it wasn't until later on in the day that Fuu finally decided to take on the task of wringing them out and hanging them up. In return, Mugen managed to fix Fuu's broken sandal, by taking a loose nail from the huts structure, he jammed it into the material of the toe strap and into the hole where it used to be secure. The bottom of the nail didn't go out the other end, so as long as she didn't go crazy, it should stay in place._

 _Stepping out of the hut, large puddles of water and mud had formed everywhere. Fuu knew that her feet and her kimono would suffer once again. Although not entirely clean, lots of of filth and grime from their travels had washed off because of the rain, and Mugen didn't have the patience to travel carefully. Chances were that she would be lead through puddles and mud until they find a proper path or road._

 _Adjusting the strap of her bag against her shoulder, she did a mental check: tanto, Momo, bag, money...Mugen?_

 _"Mugen?" Just a few steps away, Mugen was staring down at the muddy ground. "Do you think that there is a path near here? Since there's this hut, there should be a way for the people to find it... Mugen?"_

 _He didn't acknowledge her in the slightest, so she watched him. It wasn't often that he was quiet- even when he was sleeping he was snoring louder than a grizzly. His eyes were completely fixated on the ground in front of him. She couldn't see much of his face, but it seemed placid._

 _"Mugen?"_

 _"What?" His voice snapped at her, finally looking up from the ground, he looked at her to quickly look to the trees around them._

 _"Let's go?"_

* * *

Stuffing the notepad back into her bag, she quickly finished off the last order of dumplings. Mugen seemed to be looking at a notice board next to the benches they were sitting at, apparently he hadn't lost all of his ability at reading yet. Collecting the dirty dishes, skewers and cups, Fuu brought them back into the small dive.

"Thank you for the food Ojii-san." Bowing her head, the jade bead lightly knocked against her.

"Oh, no, not at all miss. Thank you for your patronage, please come again." The elder gentleman took the dishes from Fuu with shaky hands. He seemed far too frail and too old to be working still- it seemed be was the only one here, and presumably the owner. His face, sagging with folds and creavaces, hiding any signs of what use to be youth. His back was humped slightly, making him shorter than Fuu. His eyes were starting to look milky, but yet he still smiled with a mouth full of teeth.

"-If you don't mind me asking, where can we find the next town?" The elderly gentleman was more than kind enough to give her directions to the next town over, and where the next major road was. If they kept a steady pace, they would be on the main road within two hours, and at the next town just after dark. Running out of the dive, Fuu found Mugen still standing at the old rickety notice board. "What are you looking for?"

"Something interesting.."

"Hm?" Looking at the board, there was nothing too extravagent, or anything particularly interesting. Mostly old, weathered "lost adds", a few notices for wanted thieves and other petty thefts.

"Here we go-" Ripping off a flyer, Mugen saw all that he needed to. He new there was a koban sign on it, and he recognized a few symbols. "We're going wherever the hell this is." Shoving it to Fuu she clumsily caught the paper before it fluttered to the ground.

" _Wanted : Help: Sword and Combat abilities. 12 koban pay per week, Nagahama._ \- Hm? What? I can't make out this person's name. And all the way in Nagahama? The entire thing seems fishy to me...And what the...what's this supposed to be?" Squinting her eyes, Fuu held the paper closer to her face. There seemed to be some kind of character drawn at the top and bottom of the add. She had never seen anything like it before.

"Shut your damn mouth! Does it really say that?!" Grabbing the paper from her, Mugen scanned it over and over again, not that he could read it most of it, but his mind was stuck on the 12 kobans per week. "I don't give a damn what the job is, it's as good as mine." The money was tempting, even though he really didn't need it, unknowing to Fuu, he still had a large pouch of money tucked away in his shorts. He could survive off of nature, it can give a person food, shelter, and water but there was one thing it couldn't supply- booze and women. It had been too damn long since he wet his whistle.

"You two should be careful-"

Almost jumping out of their skins, Fuu and Mugen parted from eachother when the small elderly man was standing between them, staring at the notice board.

"-It's the same thing every week or so..some wannabe hotshot comes and picks up the flyer, then in no time, someone is back to put it back up again.."

"Don't care- come on girl." Grabbing Fuu by the back of her collar, Mugen trotted down the road, pulling Fuu behind him.

Mugen seemed to have more hop to his step, not slowing down or taking a break. Just like what the elderly gentleman said, in less than two hours they had already made to the main road. There were a few people also travelling by foot, coming from the direction of Nagahama (according to the sign at least). All of the people seemed to be without a care in the world, as they idly chatted while making their way down the road.

"We need to get a head." Rubbing his chin, Mugen studied all the different options that were passing them by. Under his geta, he rolled a rather large stone around and around.

"Get ahead? Of what? If we keep walking we'll get there tonight."

With the flip of his foot, the stone was kicked up and Mugen swiftly caught it before launching it into some trees beside them. Branches and leafs rustled and there was a solid "thud" from the stone hitting the base of the tree. "Just go get us a ride." Glancing over at Fuu, he caught the end of an eye roll and the last stretch of a sigh.

"Fine, but if they don't let you join I'm leaving without you."

"Ya, good fucking luck with that-" Before crossing his arms, he made sure to get in a quick flash of his middle finger as she stuck her tongue out at him.

Stepping onto the side of the main road from the small adjacent path they were on, Fuu pushed her shoulders back, chest up and held up her thumb. Traffic was steady, but there was still some lag space between oncoming wagons. Following the flow of the road, and the direction of the sign, she walked backwards. If no one was going to give them a lift then the least she could do was slowly make progress as they waited. Mugen had already hid himself in the trees, slowly keeping pace with her but not allowing himself to be seen. Momo, once again abandoned Fuu for the vagrant, which Fuu didn't necessarily mind but, it boggled her mind as to why the squirrel seemed to like him so much. Mugen always referred to Momo as a rat, or a thing, and never really seemed to pay much mind to her either.

Slowly, another wagon came into view. It seemed to be going at a decent speed, but perhaps it would be too fast for her to gain their attention.

"Excuse me! I need a ride to Nagaha- AH!" It was only a matter of time before Fuu managed to fall or get hurt again, it had been over 3 days since she fell from the ledge. Somehow, managing to trip on her feet, Fuu fell down onto the road- directly in the path of the oncoming wagon. Clenching her eyes, she waited for the bone crunching stomps of the horses hooves on her body. The loud whinnies, and erratic clomps seemed too close for comfort.

"Miss!? Miss, are you okay?!"

"Huh?.." Opening one eye, Fuu peaked up, to see a rather round woman crouching down in front of her. The woman had eyes that seemed too small for such a large structure, her nose was turned up at the end with eyebrows as this as a piece of paper. Her hair was frizzed out, much like Mugen's whenever it got too humid out.

"-Are you okay?!"

"Hah? Hai! I'm sorry!" Standing up, the circular woman helped Fuu brush off all the dust and debris from her kimono. "I just happened to fall, I'm so sorry."

"Are you sure you're not hurt?"

"Yes I-" Stopping for a moment, Fuu realized this was her chance. Stumbling on her feet a fit, Fuu fell down to her knees, grasping her right ankle. "Ow! My ankle...I must have sprained it.." Rubbing her ankle and her foot, Fuu looked down at her ankle. "Now how ever will I get to Nagahama?..." Eyes darting in the direction from where she fell, Mugen popped his head out of the bush and gave Fuu a large thumbs up. On her way to look at the woman with her large doe eyes, with fake tears already on the works, Fuu saw the real cause of what made her fall. A large, suspicious branch with fresh green leafs still attached, lay directly in what was Fuu's path. _'The jerk did that on purpose!'_

With a gasp, the woman brought a large puffy hand to her mouth. "You're going to Nagahama? We aren't quite going that far but we can get you half way there." Straightening herself, the woman leaned around the front of one of the horses. "Dear! We're giving this poor girl a ride with us!"

"Yes dearest."

Trying to look around the two horses, Fuu couldn't catch a glimpse at the man that she assumed was the woman's husband. Not that Fuu wanted to be rude, but she was surprised at the notion of this woman having male companionship. _'Hell..I can't even get a decent date!'_ Taking the woman's hand, Fuu slowly rose back to her feet, remembering to be cautious of her fake injury.

"B-But..I also have my friend...they're just relieving themselves in the trees right now."

"Of course sweetie, your friend can come too. What are your names?"

"Ah, my name is Fuu!..and my friend is named Mugen."

"Mugen?"

A shadow cast over Fuu's back and the front of the woman. "Yo, that'd be me."

Fuu didn't bother looking at Mugen, but she could see the colour wash away from the woman's plump face. Perhaps just as surprised as Fuu was at the woman's male companionship, the woman's face didn't hide any emotions. Shock, horror, a complete loss on why a gentle looking girl like Fuu was with such a beaten up and beastly looking guy.

Pulling down the back gate, Mugen stepped up into the back of the open gate with complete ease. The height of it was almost level with Fuu's hips- one of the largest and tallest wagons Fuu had seen in a long time. They must have been making some sort of delivery and were on their way home, it was quite impressive but it made it impossible for Fuu to climb in the back with her kimono on. Flopping down on her stomach, Fuu tried to pull herself into the wagon but she wasn't able to swing her legs up and there wasn't a notch for her to grab onto.

"Damn, you're useless.." Grabbing her by her wrists, Mugen lazily pulled Fuu onto the wagon. Quickly letting go as soon as her legs were up, he helped close the back gate and sat with his legs sprawled up against the back corner. He was making it clear he had no interest in the kind couple that had offered them a ride. His arms were crossed and he watched the road and trees behind them.

Crawling across from Mugen, Fuu sat in the opposite corner from him, his right leg brushing against her as it blocked her from sitting directly beside the gate. Momo scurried from Mugen, across his leg and back to Fuu. Fuu was more than happy to welcome her friend back to her side. Stroking the soft fur, Fuu enjoyed the easy day they seemed to be having. The clip-clopping of the horses, the slight squeak coming from one of the wagon wheels, and the crunch of the gravel beneath them. It had been a long time since things felt this calm. She didn't mean to ignore their generous "hosts", but the woman seemed to shook over the appearance of Mugen that she appeared to need some time to accept the reality of their passengers.

Looking at the back of the woman's husband, Fuu was trying to decide if he was attractive or not. Is there such a think as an attractive back view? Well..in some cases but not typically with the back of their heads and shoulders. His hair was close cut, black as the night and his ears stuck out the sides of his head like saucers. _'Make that a no...'_ Fuu knew everyone had their qwerks but maybe growing his hair out would do him some good. But if that woman was willing to accept him, and he her, then who's to stop them? In today's world, with how hectic and dangerous it could be, a person should really hold onto whatever happiness they can find.

Letting out a slight hum, Fuu found herself being lulled by the motion of the wagon. It was just like being rocked to sleep by her mother when she was wonder. Back, and forth, back, and forth. Bending her knees, Fuu crossed her arms over them and set her head down. Allowing the motion to ease her eyes closed, she fought it for a bit. Going between the darkness of her eyelids, to the bright world around her. She adjusted her chin so her head was up right, opening her eyes one last time, her gaze met Mugen's who didn't pull from hers. _'..is he watching me?..Nah..'_

Looking at Fuu, her eyes closed again, and her body swayed with the wagon. Even he released a rather large yawn, but he couldn't afford to relax quite yet. Not out on the open road like this. Looking out behind them again, his darted from the two large lines of trees that surrounded the road. _'It ain't like they done anything yet..but..'_ Glancing back at the napping Fuu, Momo popped out of Fuu's bag with a large sunflower seed hanging out of her mouth. The grey squirrel ran back to Mugen and sat next to the elbow he had resting on the gate. "You know it too don't ya, ya little rat? But who the hell?" With a big bump of the road, he bit his cheek and he felt Fuu's body shift more on his leg and the gate. His body grew hot once again, it had been happening to him off an on for the last few days. Pulling on his collar, he watched the passing trees again. _'Must be getting a damn cold..'_

* * *

"How about here?" Walking down yet another street, Fuu pointed to another Inn.

It seemed Mugen was doing the same thing he had done at the small village they were in before Fukui. He was scouting out the "goods", as she liked to put it. For as irrational as he could be, he sure put a lot of time and careful consideration into the lodgings : booze : women, ratio. He couldn't be needed to be close enough to where the good booze and women were at so if he got too out of it he wouldn't wind up in an alley some where, but it needed to be far enough that if he needed to get away he would be able too. Eyeing up the Inn she just pointed at, there was a very noticible and prominent sign hanging by the door that read: **Help Wanted**.

"Mugen!" Grabbing him by the sleeve, he almost pulled her over when he continued to take a few extra steps. "Look, look! It's a job!"

"Heh?.." Running his tongue along the front of his teeth, it pushed his lips out. It was a busy enough street, that even at night there would probably still be people around. "So then go get to work, I got stuff I gotta do."

"So then we'll be staying there then!" Like a well trained pick pocket, Fuu reached into Mugen's shorts, and pulled out the large pouch of money. Imagine her surprise when she first found it. The jerk was trying to keep it hidden from her but she stumbled upon it when she had to wring out his clothes and hang them after they got rained on in the mountain.

"The fuck, you little thief!" Quickly catching her neck with the nook of his elbow, he stopped her. "What the hell are ya trying to pull huh?" With his free hand, he took out three kobans from the almost stolen pouch. It was more than enough for a nights worth of fun.

"Ack! You're not seriously going to go get drunk already, are you?" Stretching her chin up, her neck was uncomfortably pressed by his arm.

"You just worry about you, and I'll worry about me." Letting her go, he pushed Fuu slightly in the direction of the Inn. "Don't go wandering around. Stay here."

"Didn't you just say _'you just worry about you, and I'll worry about me'_?"

"Yea, but that was for you, not for me. Now, don't wait up."

"Wait up? The sun isn't even down yet! Go make yourself useful for once!" Rubbing her neck, she looked over her shoulder, to the blank spot where Mugen used to be. Rubbing her temples she reminded herself that this was only temporary. _'Work hard enough and you can get him his dumb dumplings..'_ Turning on her heel, she used her small size to weave through the few people that were passing by on the road. Pulling the add off of the side of the building, she entered with a tall posture and a bright smile.

* * *

Slurping up another large bundle of noodles, Mugen didn't care the last few inches of it swooped up to hit him on the nose. He had big plans for tonight and he'd be damned if he got drunk too fast or if he past out without being able to remember anything. One of his many unspoken rules was, food before booze. Not that food overruled booze, but if he was going to drink, he was going to eat. Why waste what could be a great experience if all your going to do is drink until everything goes black?

Slapping his now round and robust stomach, he let out a large belch which seemed to amuse the small store owner. Looking over his shoulder, at the large open door, the shadows of everything and everyone on the street were stretched. If he left now, he would make it to the red light district in time for night fall. He took the liberty of scouting everything out already. The girl seemed to pick an Inn that was almost all the way across town but fuck it. She picked it, and it would be easy enough to get back even if he was drunk.

Slamming some of his change on the table, he startled some of the other patrons. "Some sake."

As soon as the white ceramic container hit the table, Mugen decided to skip the small cup that came with it. "Here's to finally getting laid!" Holding up the bottle, he pressed it to his lips, taking a larger gulp than he intended. It burned down his throat, might have only been about a week since he last had some but damn, it felt like months. If it tasted this good already, he couldn't help but shiver at how much better it would taste with a naked broad hanging onto him. With two more larger gulps, he slammed down the empty container onto the counter and quickly left.

His blade hit against his back as he seemed to be walking with more of a bounce. And just like he thought, as soon as he was standing outside of the red light district, the sun was already gone, and the streets were lit with lanterns. The red hues reflected on his face, as he couldn't hold back his lasvicious smile. Walking into one of the larger shops, Mugen flashed his money before the owners could showcase their rehearsed greeting. His eyes glimmered as much as the shiny currency.

"My, my! Let's get this gentlemen a room and make him comfortable!"

The middle aged gentleman seemed elated, putting on a large smile and constantly bowing his head- thanking Mugen for choosing his shop over the others. It wasn't anything extraordinary, it was your run of the mill brothel, but it seemed to have more guards out by the doors. In Mugen's mind that meant there were more girls here, which meant more tits.

Finally arriving at his room, it was larger than the ones he usually got. The futon seemed larger than most, wider than two regular futons if they were side by side. The wooden trim around the room was painted a darker green, including the wooden lining of the shoji doors. Plants hung from the ceiling in two of the corners, and hanging from both side walls were large decorative scrolls with scenic paintings on them. Mugen wasn't one for art but it didn't look half bad, in his experience, if things were hung up on a wall it was usually to cover up a hole or a scuff mark that wasn't meant to be seen.

"-Now sir..how much were you looking to spend this evening? How many girls-"

"Fucking all of it."

"Excellent choice. Might I make a recommendation?"

Raising an eyebrow, Mugen really just wanted this guy to shut his food trap but there was no point in pissing him off. If he offended or pissed off the owner, then there would be no chance of him getting laid- here or any where else in this entire town. "I don't care. Give me some booze, and send me some huge fucking tits."

"Ah, very well sir. I promise you will be very pleased." Bowing again, the man backed out of the room and shut the door behind him.

Plopping himself down on the futon, Mugen crossed his legs, tapping his fingers on his knees, trying not to get too impatient. The sake from earlier had already softened the blow on his body, he would need more to make sure his fun didn't end too soon. Even if they were nothing but prostitutes, he didn't want to be laughed at for having a quick draw. But based on the money he gave the owner, he should be good for a few hours of fun with a single girl, or at least an hour with a few girls.

Out of breath, Mugen laid sprawled out beside the girl. _'Fuck..yes..'_ He was sweaty, tired, and fully satisfied. Scratching his chest he looked over at the girl, he wanted to grab a hold of her chest again, and possibly go for another round before he was told his time was up but she had rolled over onto her stomach. Slapping his hand down on her ass, he gained a rather loud yelp from her. He squeezed it, looking at her flesh between his fingers. She was a bit of a heavier girl, at least for Japanese standards but it was worth it for the curves she had. Her chest was more than a handful, and her face wasn't half bad either. Apparently she was newer, younger than Fuu, but she seemed well experienced at stuff like this.

"You part of the Kawara group too?" Her voice was high pitched, kind of squeeky, showing how young she really was. She had a slight accent, obviously she was from out in the boonies somewhere. In her hands was the flyer he had grabbed earlier, his shorts were discarded near her, so it must have fallen out. "Just had some customers in the other day with this on their clothes." Pointing at the peculiar symbol that was at the top and bottom of the flyer, the girl gave Mugen back his paper. "Apparently they come through here all the time."

"-I don't give a fuck about your other customers." Sitting up, Mugen took another swig of his sake. Smacking her ass again, he watched the slight ripples. Getting on top of her legs he hovered, pulling her hips up he forced her onto her knees. Positioning himself again, he pushed her head down onto the futon. "You just concentrate on this-"

* * *

"Is he still sleeping?"

Pulling down another sheet from the line, Fuu took two corners and her temporary coworker named Chiemi took the other two corners. Chiemi was a painfully plain girl, she reminded Fuu of the type of girls she used to be friends with before her mother passed away. Her hair was long and dark brown, kept in a low pony tail, her eyes dark, and surrounded with thin lines of short lashes. The only thing that could be considered standout about her was the light collage of freckles that covered the bridge of her nose.

Fuu tried to hide the unimpressed expression on her face but she had done enough complaining yesterday that there wasn't any point on hiding anything. "Yea, he's been out cold since he got back the other night." Synchronising with each other, the two girls folded the sheet, meeting the ends, and repeating the process until it was at the required size. Letting out a large sigh, Fuu placed it nicely on top of the other folded sheets in the basket before they went to work at another one.

"-And why are you with him again?"

"I'm not **with** him, I'm just travelling with him. He's an old friend of mine. We travelled together a few years ago and we happened to cross paths again." Pouting out her lips, Fuu's folds got harsher as her mind dwelled on the still sleeping vagrant. _'Honestly..I'm going to pumble him..'_

Almost gasping, Chiemi covered her mouth with her hand with a child like wonder in her eyes, dropping her end of the sheet "You mean you two went your separate ways just to find each other again? Doesn't that sounds kind of romantic?! Like the threads of fate itself-"

"There's no way! Absolutely not! Sheesh..don't say such strange things... As if."

She and Mugen had been here for over two days already. When she brought in the help add, she was hired on the spot. Apparently the Inn was just about to start their linen and bed rotations which meant there was going to be a heap of laundry to do. But it was so late in the day when Fuu showed up that they didn't want her starting until the next day, which was yesterday. So she spent her time enjoying the futon and bath as a paying customer, all while Mugen was doing god knows what. She had a pretty good idea, after all she told him before they hit Fukui that he could do his thing and she would do hers. Her business just happened to be trying to gain some financial stability, and his business usually had to do with some slut and booze. Or fighting, but he came back without a scratch or speck of blood on him.

Fuu left a description of Mugen at the front desk, so that whenever he decided to show up they would know he was with her, but the drunkard didn't even make it that far. Fuu's face still flushed with embarrassment just thinking about how the mistress of the Inn came to her room to let her know there was a man that fit the description passing out by the doors on the street.

Fuu's coworker couldn't help but laugh to herself. "I still can't believe how drunk he was, and what was he calling you?"

"Ugh, don't remind me!" Tugging down another sheet, the line bounced with the force. "He's going to pay for it when he finally wakes up!"

 **Approximately 38 hours prior**

 _The socks on her feet softened the blow of the floor beneath her. She was fuming, she was embarrassed, and she was foolish for not expecting any less of him. Night had come long ago, and she was finally nearing sleep after finding just the right spot on the futon. But no. Of course she wouldn't be granted a peaceful night's sleep, at least not yet anyway. Instead she had a drunken idiot to deal with first. Walking past the front desk, and down the short distance between it and the entrance, Fuu stuck her head out, not fully prepared for the state Mugen was in._

 _He infact was far from passing out. He had fallen against the side of the building, with his legs straight out in front of him and his back secured against the wall. His head bobbed from side to side, in an attempt of swaying with the inappropriate song he seemed to be slurring and yelling all at once. His long and arms swayed in all directions with his one of his wrists and hands limp, and in the other he was swinging around his sheathed blade. A few people had gathered at the other side of him, laughing and making comments._

 _"tHE MoutH IS CONNecTED TO THA BOOZE, THA BOOZE ish CONECted-"_

 _"MUGEN!" Stepping between his legs, she grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling him from the wall. "Shut up and get inside now! You're making a scene!" Snapping her head at the onlookers, she wasn't going to hold back on them either. "And all of you! Don't you have anything better to do?! Get out of here!"_

 _The onlookers, knowing their fun was now over, slowly walked away, leaving her and Mugen._

 _"AYYYY IT'S THE SUNFLOWER BRAT!" Lightly smacking her face a few times he was smiling like a simpleton._

 _Scrunching her nose, she couldn't believe he was still somewhat functioning. Her absolutely reeked of booze, even she could get drunk from the fumes coming from him. Feeling her eyebrow twitch, she would just accept it for now. She could argue with him later, she just needed to get him inside. "Yea, yea, It's me. Now how bout you come inside with me and get some sleep."_

 _"-Don't wanna."_

 _"I wasn't asking, now get your butt inside!" Letting go of his collar, he instantly slammed back against the wall again. Grabbing one of his arms, it went limp, making it heavier than she expected._

 _"-Make me, Shunflower B-hic-brat." Hiccuping between syllables, Mugen smacked his tongue and lips a bit._

 _"Fuu-chan?..Do you want some help?" Scratching her head, the same girl that showed her around the Inn earlier in the day was standing there. "My dad often came home like this, so I know it can be a struggle to handle it alone."_

 _"WHA-hic-. Why ish there two shunflower bratsts now?!" Head fumbling and bobbing, he looked at the two of them again and again. "Fuck one of ya -hic- ug-hic-ly."_

 _"Chiemi-chan, you're a saint." Bowing her head a few times, both girls dipped themselves under Mugen's arms, and eventually brought him up to his feet. Fuu slipped her arm through the strap on Mugen's sheath so it wouldn't be left behind. On the way to the room, the two girls chatted a bit, at least they tried to over Mugen's incoherent drunk drabbles._ _Getting to the rented room, Fuu slid the door open using her foot. Both girls needed both arms to keep Mugen somewhat stable. "Thank you Chiemi-chan. I'll take it from here."_

 _"Are you sure?"_

 _"Yea, I'll just drop the drunk on the floor and leave him there. He'll probably pass out as soon as his head hits the ground."_ _Adjusting themselves, Mugen suddenly got way heavier and he seemed to be pressing down more on her. "See you tomorrow morning Chiemi-chan."_

 _"Hai, goodnight Fuu-chan."_

 ** _Back to Present tim_**

"So what happened after I left that night?" Picking up one of the full baskets of folded linens, Chiemi's arms were fully extended down because of the weight-causing the basket to hang below her hips.

"Ack...nothing..in particular." Picking up a basket, Fuu held it in a similar fashion to Chiemi. "He fell asleep as soon as he laid down, just like I said he would." Lifting up a knee, Fuu momentarily ballanced the basket so she could tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Mhm, right." Trying not to pry the topic any further, Chiemi wasn't as dense as she let on. The heavy blush that grew on Fuu's face didn't go unnoticed, but it was really none of her business. "It will be boring when you leave. You're a really hard worker."

The two girls walked side by side to put the folded linens away where they belonged. "Yea, it was a nice change of pace. But we need to head to Nagahama. Maybe when I'm done there, I can stop by again and say hi?"

Nodding her head, Chiemi looked to her new friend. "I'd like that."

* * *

Steps still staggering, Mugen stared down at the ground. The sun was too hot, the ground was too hard, the world was too damn loud. The rocks beneath his feet made his head ring as he stepped. This morning he couldn't even eat anything, everything still felt like it was spinning and his stomach was flopping. Just watching Fuu eat everything herself made him feel sick. Groaning, he stopped walking, and his eyes started to flutter shut.

"MUUUGEN!" Hand close to her mouth, Fuu had gone up on her tippy toes to get as close to his ear as he could.

"Shut the fuck up! Stop being so loud. Ugh.." Rubbing his face some more, he really wanted to curl into a ball in the darkest place he could find.

"You slept for over 24 hours, you're not getting any sympathy from me! So-" Going behind him, she pushed on his back, forcing him to continue on. "-you need to keep moving. What if someone gets that job in Nagahama before you?"

Leaning against the her palms on his back, it felt kind of nice but damn it all, he had a really hard time believing he slept that long. What was worse was that he could only remember bits and pieces of his time at the brothel. Images flashed in his mind but the full memories and sensations were no where to be found. He couldn't even remember what it felt like to have a handful of tit. He mimicked the act in the air, watching his hand and fingers curl- there was nothing. There were only two things he could really remember.

"Oi..sunflower brat...what the hell is a Kawara?"

Freezing in place, Fuu's arms went straight up into the air, making Mugen fall backwards, almost taking her down with him.

"ARGH! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" Grasping his head, his entire body seemed to crumble because of the pounding in his head.

"I-I thought you said you couldn't remember anything!" Staring down at him, a cold sweat ran down her back. She had pushed aside her own embarrassment when he first woke up and complained everything was fuzzy and black to him. If he didn't remember then there was no reason for her to dwell on it, but here she was again, with her face growing hot.

"I can't! That's why I'm asking you." Painfully slow, Mugen started to stand up again, using her shoulder to help steady himself. "You damn sunflower brat..I remember calling you that. God damn it." With a slight push, Fuu stumbled backwards and he continued on down the road, rubbing his head and grumbling to himself.

"Sheesh...maybe you should just stop drinking.." Grabbing onto the material of her chest, her heart was banging like a drum. "There's nothing worth knowing, and you definitely didn't say anything about a Kawara?." Patting herself on the chest, she fought against the internal thumping because she caught up to him. He really looked worn down and quite pathetic. She only had a hang over twice before, but she curled up under her blankets and slept it off. The poor guy was still suffering after all this time, and it was probably for the best he didn't remember it. Because she didn't want to, she wanted to forget it, and even if she told him he wouldn't believe her.

* * *

 _Stumbling into the room, Mugen's feet dragged behind them, and just as they were reaching the point of falling over he stepped forward saving both of them from the floor. He was heavy, really heavy. It's true what they say, muscle is heavier than fat. Mugen had almost no fat on his body but yet she felt like her legs were going to give out on her any moment now._

 _"I'm taking off 50 dumplings because of this! What did you call it? A pain in the ass fee!" His elbow was hooked around her neck and shoulder, and he was pressing all of his weight against her._

 _"Ass? You shay ASS?!" Swinging his long arm around in front of her, he changed both of their positioning. Stumbling a bit, their fronts were pressed together with his one arm still tightly over her neck and shoulder. His other hand snaked its way onto Fuu's rear, where he gave it a hard and rough squeeze._

 _Eyes wide and almost a loss- her stomach and heart felt like they were going to leap out of her throat. "Wh-what are you doing?!"_

 _"Shhh..Shhh, shhh shhh..." Both of them wobbled and weave despite them standing still. But apparently it was too hard of a task for Mugen to stay still._

 _"Mugen!" Managing to gather all of her strength, she pushed Mugen back with both hands._

 _Successfully, he released her and fell backwards onto the center of the futon. He laid width-wise across the entire thing. "Come on Shunflower -hic- brat. Itsh the leasht you can -hic- do. I alwaysh shaving ya, and what do I -hic- get in return? FUCK ALL. Thatsh swhat." Running his hands over his face he said something else but it was completely illegible because of his hands._

 _"That's why I'm buying you dumplings..." Running her hand over the side of her face, this wasn't the time to have this kind of conversation. "Just go to sleep, you're drunk."_

 _"FUCK." Bringing his legs up in the air, he used the momentum of bringing them back down to help him sit up, where he slowly wobbled on the spot. "Drunk er not..Imma man too.." His face was completely flushed, and even though he seemed unsteady, his faze was firm on hers._

 _"Just lay down. I'll go get you some water."_

 _"Ey..." Grabbing her wrist, Mugen stopped her from walking away. "Admit it."_

 _"Wha?.." Instinctively she tried pulling her wrist from his, but even though he was slobbering drunk, his grip was still good._ _'Does he seem more sober?..'_

 _"That Imma man.."_

 _Rolling her eyes, she tugged on her wrist again, but this time she was pulled down onto her knees and between his legs. "Cut it out Mugen." His face was dangerously close to hers, and the smell of booze intensified as they almost shared the same breath. With no where else to look, she tried looking down and around at their surroundings. His actions were drunkenly, but his eyes were serious and sober._

 _"Looking away ish jusht like admitting it." Leaning in slowly, his eyes stayed on her._

 _Feeling him shift, she looked back to him, to see him closing the small distance between their faces. Every millisecond felt like an eternity as she felt the heat of his breath against her, and his once open eyes slowly closed. Hearing and feeling her own breath quicken and grow unsteady, her toes curled as he tightened his grip on her wrist, bringing it in closer to where his legs connected to his body- not allowing her to move or back away. Her chest tightened, when she felt the warmth of his lips on her._

 _Her stomach flopped and she wanted to cry out and smack him, feeling enough embarrassment for the both of them. She stayed still as he missed his target and planted his lips on part of her chin and jawline, barely missing her lips. The top curve of his upper lip brushed against the corner of her mouth, but all she could feel was the prickling of his growing facial hair._ _Suddenly pulling away, Mugen let go of Fuu's wrist and flopped backwards with his eyes closed and a snore already in full roar._

 _"What..what?! WHAT WAS THAT?!" Closing her hands into fists, she wanted to beat the living daylights out of him, but it looked like the booze already did that. Finally resting down from her knees, her legs felt like wet noodles under her, as she gently touched the spot of her face that felt hot from his lips. "What...what was that?.."_

* * *

"Next time how bout I go get drunk and you work? Okay?"

Not in the mood for any back and forth, he glared at her through the holes between his fingers. He was trying to block out most of the light and heat from hitting his face but he wasn't having much luck. "Fuck no.."

"It'll be fine!" Slapping him hard on the back, she was going to have fun with him like this. Get her own little revenge for what he had done, and he had the audacity to forget about it. "Let's just hurry up to Nagahama." Offering him a overly friendly smile, his grim look didn't let up. They just kept on walking down the side of the road, with careful eyes watching them.

* * *

 **Okay, I know, boring chapter. But this was all to just help guide them to Nagahama (I am taking some creative liberties and changing their original path from the show to make this work). This is where things are really going to start getting crazy. Things from previous chapters are going to start getting answered, and even things from the show are getting looped back in. Seriously, a lot will be happening, things will be crazy, and I can't wait to start writing some action scenes again! Who's ready for some kick ass Mugen moments?! I AM!**


	12. Chapter 11 - Hellhound Bound

**I know, took me forever to update. I honestly struggled with getting 3,000 words, let a lone trying to get close to 10,000. But this turned out to be a LONG chapter. I really don't like the wording of some spots, but instead of taking the time to rework it, I wanted to get this out as soon as I finished. I once again took some creative liberties and changed the path/location of their original journey to work for my story.**

 **I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and Holiday Season, as well as a fun and safe New Years. To fill my curiosity, how cold did it get wherever you're from on Christmas? Here it was a bone chilling -47!**

 **I do not own Samurai Champloo, or the character's associated.**

 **Chapter 11- Hellhound Bound**

* * *

Unfolding the piece of paper, Fuu studied the mysterious symbol once again. She compared it to anything she could on her tourist guide. Nagahama was a hot tourist spot, and it did plenty of business in dealing with guns. However, the guide seemed to be of no help. It listed major inns, restaurants and other things travellers might find interesting but there was nothing similar to what she was looking for. The "hot shot" city really seemed to be confusing, especially just looking at the map. Nagahama used to consist of three different districts, but it had since been combined into one.

She paid no mind to the people staring at her and her companion as the two of them seemed to be blocking the middle of the busy street. Normally in a situation like this, people would be bumping into her, nudging her, telling her to move it or lose it, but Mugen seemed to serve as a perfect deflector as he stood right behind her. One look at his sour face and they steered clear of both of them. His hang over was gone, but his stomach was still feeling under the weather apparently, which was leaving him in an incredibly sour mood. It wasn't anything new to her though, so even though he was emitting a dark cloud of hate into the world, it didn't faze her.

"Maybe..it's a business emblem? Or a clan mon?" Clicking her tongue, she squinted her eyes as if it would allow her to see something she might have been missing.

"-You think so?" Leaning down, Mugen hovered his head over her shoulder.

Tightening her grip on the paper, it scrunched under the pressure. She could feel his breath on her ear, and despite her inner resistance, her face felt hot. She would never want to admit it, let a lone show it, but the last few days she has been painfully aware of Mugen. He didn't behave any differently than he previously had, nor did he say anything different but at the same time it was as if everything had suddenly changed.

"I can't see it when you hold it like that. What the hells the matter with you huh?" Reaching for the paper, Fuu quickly adjusted it before he could full reach.

"Well, it's not like you can read it anyway!" Turning her face, she had forgotten just how close he really was. Her cheek rubbed against the stubble on his chin, causing her to step away. "-Too close!" Crossing her arms in front of her she made an "x".

"What's your problem?" Sticking his pinky in his ear, he worked at some wax that seemed to have finally worked its way out.

"If you stand close like that people might get the wrong idea!"

Slapping himself in the face, he couldn't continue to handle her ridiculous level of undeserved confidence. What the hell made her think he even wanted to be close to her? He was just trying to get another look at the paper. She was always weird but she had been extra weird for the last while, maybe she had been suppressing her true personality and was finally beginning to let it out.

Putting her thumb nail in her mouth she bit it lightly, not to tear or cut it, but out of habit. "Looking at the way it's worded...I don't think it will be that easy to just ask people, they obviously want to stay inconspicuous."

"Incon-what?"

Rolling her eyes, she pulled the nail out of her mouth and the adjoining hand on her hip. "It means they want to lay low, hush hush. Not that you're good at that. For all we know, someone else already took the job."

Unfortunately for her, Mugen's hungover state made what would have been an easy days walk, stretch out over two long and tiresome days. Almost every half hour, he would stop and attempt to take a nap. At one point he even used his crazy speed to run up ahead of her so he could nap until she caught up to him. And whenever they did get to a good pace he would get intensely dizzy, saying things like the world around him were moving faster than what his eyes and mind could process. It didn't help that his stomach wasn't able to hold down food the first day either. It was already past noon when he decided he wanted to try something and it took only a few seconds before whatever went down, came back up.

"Let's just hurry up and find whoever it is." Holding back his index finger with his thumb, he twacked Fuu's forehead. She seemed off in la-la-land again, and damn did it ever piss him off. She was either nagging him nonstop or doing this, not paying attention. How may times has it been that he's told her to get her head out of the clouds? At least 5 times too many.

"Ow!" Smacking his hand away, it felt like deja vu. "Okay, what time should we meet up again?"

"Whaddya mean, meet up?"

"Well..Nagahama is a big place. I figured we would split up-" Folding the paper in half, Fuu ran her finger nail and her thumb over the fold line, making it a sharper fold. Then with ease, she tore the paper into two pieces, handing one to Mugen and keeping one for herself. "This way we both have a copy of the symbol, and we can cover more ground."

Taking the piece of paper, he looked at it with indifference. "Last time we did that you didn't show."

"Irrelevant! I was still working, you just got impatient." Tucking her half of the paper into her obi, she unfolded the large tourist guide which was also a layout of the city. "I'll take this area, and you take this one. Okay? Mugen?" She didn't even need to look at him to know he wasn't paying any attention to her. His gaze was off into the crowd and to the buildings around them.

"Ya, I got it." Taking a quick peek at the guide, he had somewhat of an idea on where he was supposed to look- although he would really just go wherever looked interesting enough. "You still got that dinky little knife of yours, right?"

"Huh? My tanto? Yea, I still have it, why?" With the guide in her hand, she shoved it into her kimono sleeve, pulling out the pink lacquer of the sheath.

"No, reason, just checking is all." With his hands in his pockets, and his back slightly humped he turned and left without another word.

Readjusting the tanto within her kimono, she watched Mugen walk in the direction that she was supposed to go in. _'That guy never listens, does he?'_ Adjusting her bag on her shoulder, and tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, she set off to find any clue she could.

* * *

"Thank you for your time!" Bowing again, Fuu marked an "x" on the city guide. She was going to keep track of the streets she went to and where she asked for information in regards to the symbol. She had been down so many streets and had already talked to so many people but there really was nothing to help. There wasn't even so much as a clue to who these mystery people were. So far there was a pattern in how people were reacting, no one seemed to be denying nor confirming anything- they just wished her the best of luck in her search.

Nagahama was buzzing, it reminded her of Osaka. Everywhere she looked was a store or a group of people that were duplicates of those in her memory. The people around her buzzed like busy bees, trying to get to their business but keeping in mind to enjoy themselves. Mother's held onto their children's hands tightly as they urged them to hurry up so they wouldn't miss out on whatever adventure waited for them. Groups of young men and women walked together side by side, they were too young to worry about any real responsibility- all they saw was what was right in front of them. The girls that were around Fuu's age didn't care if they were unchaperoned, or that maybe they brushed a little too close to one of the guys. Fuu could see it on their faces, the excitement, the mystery, and the endless possibilities that they could face.

"Ahhh...to be young again." Sighing, Fuu let her eyes follow the group until she was almost fully turned around, where she did a quick spin on her heel- giving her one quick glimpse of the group before she had to continue on in the opposite direction. She wondered if she ever looked like that, bright eyes and a endless smile. The idea of finding a man used to consume her, until Mugen and Jin came around. Then it finally occured to her how reckless, stupid, idiotic, moronic, and hopeless men really were. The pick up lines from customers no longer made her blush or inflate her ego. Sure her eyes would follow when a handsome man would come into view but that was about it.

 _'I mean..I don't need a man...No..I don't want a man.'_ Nodding to herself, she looked back down at the city guide again. Watching the stores around, things seemed to be becoming more and more familiar to her. But it was more than just the similarities to Osaka, something was itching at her that she had been here before. The shops, the people, the drapery set up in front of them, it was like she had seen it before.

"Where..am I?" Looking at the map, she scrunched up her face. She looked up from the map, then back down again, up again and back down. Looking all around there was nothing around her that was mentioned on her guide. She must have trailed off of the main roads and found herself on the slower paced side of Nagahama. The buildings weren't as extravagant, and the people were in fewer groups. Everything seemed dull and brown. The streets weren't as well kept, the drapery and signs of stores weren't brightly coloured. It was like she was in a completely different place than where she was just a few seconds ago. The idea of just turning around crossed her mind but she didn't want to lose all the progress she had already made thus far. Looking further down the street, it split into two, she could either go left or right. But there was someone sitting on some sort of crate with their head hung low and a large hat covering their head so she couldn't get a good look at them. As she got closer, she saw that there was a small table in front of the person, she didn't notice it at first because of the colour seemed to blend in with their clothes.

"Erm..Excuse me? Could you help me, I'm trying to find someone." Shuffling, Fuu bent down, trying to get a glimpse of the mysterious person.

"For a price-" Raising their head, Fuu's heart almost stopped. She wasn't quite prepared for their appearance. Their face was painted completely white, and their eyes were thickly lined with black. The outer corner of each eye was powdered with rouge. Their lips were also dark, matching the colour of ther oversized scraf around his neck. "-I can tell you your future, and if this mystery person is in it."

"Hmm..how much?" Crossing her arms, she was still debating whether she should or not. It had been a long time since she saw a fortune teller, and so maybe she was due for a reading.

"2 mon." Holding out their hand, it wasn't even a question to them if Fuu was going to get it done or not. They just waited.

"-Fine." Pulling out two small coins from her sleeve, she placed them into the teller's hand. "I want to know how this symbol will affect my future." Setting the ripped paper on the small table, Fuu tapped her long tail on the symbol a few times, asserting the particular inquiry.

Raising up their other hand, the fortune teller held a large black rimmed magnifying glass in front of their one eye. Fuu wanted to laugh, because it made the teller's eye look comedically huge, but she did her best in keeping face and not cracking a smile. The large magnified eye looked Fuu over a few times. Looking up, and down, and then into her eyes, and then back down again.

"My child...you have faced many hardships, and there are many more to come." Raising to their knees, the teller leaned in, over the table, grabbing Fuu's left hand. Jerking her forwards, she was uncomfortably being pressed against the sharp edge of the raised platform. The large glass remained in front of the teller's face, the eye widened and intensifying with each word.

"The boar of Kansai follows the red sun, and a price must be paid! Red as the swollen lips, the eyes of eternity shall turn! Because of your hand, everything will bleed! From whence it comes is undetermined, but what price shall you return?" Letting go of Fuu's hand, the teller slowly sat back down with perfect posture. "-The thread shall break, by either thy own hand or by greed."

Staring at the now silent teller, her eyes felt as wide open as his magnified one. So much had been said so quickly that her mind wasn't sure what to make of it all. Trying to put together everything that said it all seemed like static buzzing through her ears.

"-Or something like that." Setting the magnifying glass down the teller shrugged.

"W-What? What kind of crap are you trying to sell people!?"

"It is up to you whether you believe my words or not. It doesn't change what has been said, or what is to come."

"I asked you about this symbol!" Tapping her nail against the paper on the table once again. "How does THIS affect my future? Where can I find it?!"

Looking at the symbol briefly the teller raised an eye brow but his face seemed uninterested. "Like I said, I can tell you anything, for a price." Holding out their hand once again, the teller waited.

"Do I look stupid to you?! You con-artist!" Grabbing the paper from the table, Fuu stomped away. She didn't try to hide her dissatisfaction with the teller's service. She stomped in a similar fashion as Mugen, with her knees outwards as far as her kimono would allow. Mumbling to herself she even crossed streets without paying mind to any of the on coming traffic.

"Whoa! Watch it Miss, you might get yourself hurt."

"Yea, yea, whatever!" Not bothering to look at who was speaking, she continued on in her "fit". With a quick "hop" of her shoulder, her bag straps had repositioned themselves higher and more comfortably. With one knee high in the air, ready to step down again, something urged her to turn around, like the voice was familiar, and yet different- just like the city she was in. Turning her head, she planted her feet back on the ground, trying to look for the one who spoke to her. No one seemed to be looking back at her, or standing in place. There were a few individuals walking across the intersection she was just at. They all seemed alike, no one standing out, nor anything pulling her attention. For just a few moments her eyes followed a particular group of men, 6 or seven of them- she couldn't quite count them all before they walked their way out of her view. But they seemed to be wearing matching yukatas; dark blue in colour with the hems a lighter shade of the same colour family.

"Hm..oh well." Quickly unfolding her map once again, she mapped out her next area where she was determined to find someone that knew something about the strange symbol. "Maybe Mugen's having better luck..."

* * *

Leaning into his elevated foot even more, Mugen pressed his poor victim's head harder against the sturdy wooden wall. With his hands in his pockets and a crack of his neck, Mugen used his tongue to pick at some left over food from his teeth. The man stuck between the iron clad geta and the wall pressed his hands firmly between himself and the wood, trying to push away but he had no such luck. His breathing was panicked and it sounded whispy through his pressed cheeks and lips.

"-Now, you wanna say that again?"

"I didn't shway anyshing! I shwear!"

Pressing into his foot even more, there wasn't any more give in the fat or skin of the man, which only pushed Mugen closer to him. Surprisingly enough Mugen was able to get a good look at himself on the man's bright bald scalp."Ya sure? I'm sure I heard ya say something? Or are ya calling me a liar?"

"Huh, Ahh. Yesh I'm shu-I mean no, shir, you're not a liar!"

"Ah, I see. So what did you say exactly? Just to be clear." Turning his foot in a side motion, Mugen dug the plates harder onto the man's flesh. Mugen already knew what the man said. He heard him in passing when this man and some others were laughing and and acting all haughty. Apparently they thought they were some big shots because they can afford to sit outside on their asses all day. Mugen wasn't even sure if it was exactly directed at him but because of his experience, he was sure as hell that it was. The man beneath his foot finally seemed to be breaking, holding back sniffles and trying to break free. "Ya know..if I didn't have shit to do I would show ya just what _"useless pieces of shit"_ like me are really like." Lifting his foot off the man slightly, Mugen could hear the man's breathing relax a bit.

Feeling the foot release pressure from his head, the man quickly sprinted away from the wall and Mugen, not daring to look behind him. Turning the corner, the man fell onto all fours but quickly scuffled back up to continue his escape.

"Ah shit...shoulda asked him 'bout this thing." With one hand still in his pocket, he crumpled his half of the paper even more.

"-It's this way!"

"Hurry! We're gonna miss it!"

Coming from the direction that the man just ran off in, three young boys were running towards Mugen. They were scruffy looking, which was probably pretty normal for kids that age. Not that Mugen really knew how old they were just by looking at them, and he really didn't know much about kids either. But he knew that they were loud, roudy, dirty, annoying little bastards.

Snapping his hand down, he grabbed a kid by the back collar of their shirt, lifting them up off the ground. "Hey kid-" pulling out the crumpled paper, he held it up in front of the surprised kid's face. "-do ya know what the hell this is?"

Taken back a bit at first, the little boy looked at Mugen's face with uncertainty. The two other boys quickly retraced their steps and stood behind their elevated friend, unsure on what to make of the situation. His eyes roaming over the scars and marks, and then finally to the paper. He didn't look scared, but he was caught off guard. "It's a piece of paper." He and his friends all snickered at Mugen, as if he were nothing more than a simpleton.

"No shit, ya brat! I mean the circle on the paper!"

The child's large dark eyes studied the paper again and looked back to Mugen. "My mom says we're not supposed to talk 'bout them..."

"-My dad says they're nothing but glorified criminals."

"Nuh uh! No way, they're so cool-"

"Hah? One at a god damn time!" Releasing his grip, the boy fell down onto his rear. With his legs spread and his knees bent, Mugen balanced on the balls of feet- bringing himself down to their level. "I don't care what they do, just need to know who they are."

Each of the boys fidgeted, looking around to see if anyone else was near, or if anyone was listening.

"Kawara...they're called the Kawara group.." Avoiding eye contact with Mugen, the boy who had fallen to the ground still just sat there. His voice was low, like he had just confessed to something he shouldn't. The two boys behind him both nodded and confirmed with a hummed "Hm".

"The Kawara group huh? Sounds kinda interesting-" Looking at the paper again, Mugen stood back up, towering over the three young boys. So far today he hadn't bothered asking anyone, these kids were the first and man, did he luck out. If what Fuu said was true, then these guys didn't just go around letting people know their business, let alone let people know where they were. If he and Fuu were going to have any lucky finding them it would be because they bumped into them. Asking various people would just get him in trouble, it would seem suspicious and might set someone off. Fuu on the other hand could go wild, no one would think twice about a girl like her asking questions. Girls were curious by nature, and no one would take offense.

"Man, Kaoru! We're gonna miss it! Let's go!" Grabbing his friend up off the ground, the taller boy started to pull the other's along.

"Gonna miss what exactly?" Mugen didn't intend on following the kids, but so far everywhere he went was boring. The only half-ass interesting thing to happen to him all day was messing with the bald guy.

"There's a strong man competition!" Looking over his shoulder, the smaller of the three grinned at Mugen as all three of them started a full sprint- not wanting to miss a moment of the competition.

Standing with the large crowd, the kids instantly disappeared into the numbers. The noise brought on by the crowd was incredible, Mugen was barely able to hear his own thoughts. He wasn't quite sure where he was exactly but there were tall stone walls that surrounded the "arena" on all sides, and the only exit/entrance was behind him. The sky was open above them and the ground was just as dirty and dusty as the country roads they took to get here. Taking in the rest of the scene, Mugen could see girls blushing and pointing at men that were signing up for the competition. And even though it was illegal, people were exchanging money, placing bets on who would last the longest, who would lose to whom, and various other situations. Taking in a deep breath, Mugen could help but let the right side of his mouth curl up- forming an uneven malicious smile. He didn't know what the the purpose of this competition was, or what it all entailed but it was making his blood rush. The Kawara group, or whoever they were, could wait till later.

Knocking shoulders with people, he didn't even bother to look when he cut off a few people when he literally, took, his place in line. The groans and complaints of those behind him could hardly be heard over the sound of everything else going on around them. When he finally got to the front of the line up, he was met with a very big and very forced smile from a feeble man with round glasses.

"Hello there, sir! If you want to sign up, we need some information from you, as well as a signature on our release form. We also need to know your height and weight. Oh and plus we need the registration fee." The man pointed to about a dozen different spots where it needed to be signed, all while shoving a sharply pointed bamboo stick with ink on the end of it into Mugen's hand.

It was almost too much for Mugen to take in, and he sure as hell wasn't about to read it, even if he could read it, he wasn't going to. "How much is registration? And what do I get when I win?"

"Registration is 2 koban per competitor. And 60% of the sign up fees goes to the prizes. We section everyone off into weight classes. There are three of them by the way. And each winner of the weight class gets 20%, and from there the winners may choose to forfeit their winnings and challenge the winners of the other weight classes. So you could potentially win 60% of what we collect here, or you could walk away with 20-40%, or lose out, and walk away with nothing."

The man's words buzzed by so fast Mugen hardly had time to take it all in, but he heard all he needed to. He heard 60%, and that was what he was gonna get. Taking end dipped in ink, Mugen looped in his signature that he had created three years ago. It was about as good as it was gonna get as far as a signature went. He stared at the paper longer, not sure how to fill in his height or weight- both of which he himself didn't know, and even if he did know the numbers, he didn't know how to write them down.

"If you're not sure how much you weigh, I can just put in a number based on someone else's application." Before his sentence was finished, Mugen handed him back the papers. Looking at Mugen's signature, the man did his best to keep the overly cheap smile on his face. "What's you're name?"

"Mugen."

"Well, Mugen, we'll put you in at around 185 centimeters, and 79 kilos..! Now, we'll be needing the fee and your weapons. But don't worry! You'll get your sword back after you're finished."

Groaning, Mugen pulled the sword and the sheath off from his body, as well as pulling out the last of his money. He spent all but 2 kobans back at the brothel, and the hotel was more than what he would have liked- but it was a good place to sleep off part of his massive hangover. Following the directions given to him, Mugen found himself waiting with about twenty other men- whom of which had all already removed their shirts. No shirt, meant no cheap moves. He assumed he was in the right group because they all seemed to be about the same size as him. Finding a place to stand within the group, none of the other's even bothered to look at him. It was a strange thing, because usually he was sticking out like a sore thumb but, not in this group. As far as Mugen could tell, he was one of the more "normal" looking guys in the group- even with his tore up hand, wild hair, scars and tattoos. All eyes seemed to be on two individuals.

The one, Mugen spotted almost instantly, well actually he heard him before he could see him. At first Mugen thought he was taller than anyone else, but he realized it was just because of his hair. The sides of his head seemed to shaved right down, with barely a shadow growing back. But on top, the black locks stood straight up, about 6 inches. He looked like a hard bristled brush. He was flexing his muscles, and running his mouth about how everyone should just give up right now, and if they're nice, he will take it easy on them. It didn't seem to be sitting so well with a few guys, they were getting riled up- which was what that guy was wanting. Once you lose your cool, you're done for. Losing your cool meant you lose your edge, and then you get sloppy. Mugen had more than a few scars to prove that point.

Then there was the other guy...

Everyone seemed to be steering clear of him as he stood alone. Hell, even Mugen thought he looked like a freak, and for good (or rather strange) reasons.

Bare footed, he still stood as tall as Mugen with his getas on. But, he wasn't as well built as the other guy, but Mugen figured he was close to his own physique. What was truly off putting about him was his tattoos. Almost every inch of skin was covered in what used to be black ink. It was faded from time and from the sun, even his shaved head, and most of his face was covered. Mugen wasn't sure what the hell the tattoo was supposed to be, it just looked like one continues strand of swirls-like black flames. He just stood there watching the crowd, waiting for his turn.

Normally, Mugen wouldn't just judge someone's strength by the way they look. But, he knew. It was the looks in their eyes. It told Mugen all he needed to know, and if there was someone else within the group that was stronger, one of them would eventually take them out. Whether it was tattoo face or bristle hair, chances were that one of the three of them would be the top of the group.

It didn't take long before the three groups of fighters were then grouped into pairs, and then a roster was made. From the looks of things, Mugen's "weight-class" had 22 men registered, and a total of only 18 from the other two groups. One fight from each group would be happening at once. They had three large circles drawn on the ground with the numbers drawn in the center. Somehow, the tiny man with the glasses that Mugen spoke to at the sign up table managed to get the large noisy crowd to go silent. He explained the rules, which were scarce: 1. No weapons 2. The Fight is over when someone is forced out of the ring, or if someone is knocked out, or if one participant is no longer able to participate.

"Easy enough.." Ripping off his own haori and shirt, Mugen pressed his shoulders back, trying to make his shoulder blades meet- resulting in a satisfying crack. All he had to do was win a few fights and we would be in for some good money, and man, was he ready to fight without any consequences. He had a hard time not jumping into the ring from the start, but his fight was near the end of the first round. So all he could do for now was watch.

* * *

"This guide makes no sense! Argh!" Finally fed up with the confusing guide, Fuu scrunched it up into a ball and tossed it onto the ground. It was no help to the rural areas of Nagahama, it only showed major shops and sights. Plopping herself down on a shaded bench, her one foot was throbbing. Mugen's make shift fix on her sandal was starting to come apart. The top surface was beginning to split where the nail had been placed, making it shift. The straps and part of the nail had been rubbing between her toes, making the skin red and raw. But there wasn't much she could do about it now. _'Maybe if Mugen get's this job he can get me new..."_ Shaking her head, she quickly knocked that idea out. There was no way he would buy her new shoes, he may have been "generous" lately, at least for Mugen, but he would just add it onto her debt.

Grabbing the hair stick out of her hair, her long locks quickly unravelled. Her scalp felt relieved, even though the style wasn't done tightly, her hair still had some weight to it and it had been focused on the back of her head for a few days. Holding the hair stick infront of her, it made her stomach feel funny. Placing her hand on it, she tried to calm down her insides, placing the blame on being hungry and the heat.

"E-Excuse me miss, I was wondering if you would join me for a meal?"

"Hm?" Looking up from the hair stick, her eyes almost jumped out of her head. There was no mistaken this face. Everything from his shape, the scraggly facial hair, the round strapped glasses and his mole like features. She wasn't sure if she should run, say something, or act coy. His face looked flushed, but he smiled brightly, perhaps not remembering, or recognizing her. It was three years ago afterall, and she had done a lot of growing up since then.

 _"Hey, what are you doing?" Standing side by side, the girl that had been her companion since getting pulled in this hell hole looked to Fuu, unsure on her intentions._

 _"Can't you tell?" Flaring her nostrils, scrunching her eye brows and putting on a horrific frown, Fuu's face and body was shaking from maintaining the look. "Instead of catching the customers eyes, I'm scaring them away. If we don't get any customers, we'll be fired, and we'll be able to leave here, right?"_

 _"Ohh..."_

 _"Don't give me that 'Oh' stuff! You do it, too!"_

 _"Great! What a terrific face!"_

 _"Heh?"_

 _"You're the one for me!" Holding onto a "bar" of the window, a rounded, short man, reached in, and pointed right at Fuu. His face was flushed, and his he practically emitted steam from his nose from all the excitement._

Shaking her head, she managed to pull herself back to reality. She tried not too think of that time in the brothel too much. If it wouldn't have been for her quick thinking with the vase, this pervert would have raped her. But also, if it wouldn't have been for Jin and Mugen, the girl that stayed by her side that got pulled into it all wouldn't have been freed either. _'What was her name?..I can't..remember."_ Even though she could remember every little detail of this pervert's face, and she remembered the way his nostrils flared as his eye roamed all over her, she could not remember the woman's name or face. She just remembered a soft, kind, voice.

"Well? Miss?"

"Haha..oh, I'm actually on my way to meet a friend right now." Turning her head away, she decided to go with the coy act. After all, he said he liked the dominant, loud, type. So maybe this would put him off.

"Are you sure, Miss? Nagahama can be a dangerous place to wander by yourself. Especially for a delicate thing like you."

"I'll be fine, thank you." Clenching her teeth together, she spoke harsher towards him. She really just wanted him to go away, but he seemed to be leaning in closer, making her lean back as far as her seated body would allow. But in order to keep her balance, her shoulders were shrugged back and her developed chest up. She could hear his breathing hitch, much like it had years ago.

"Let me escort you, to make sure nothing bad happens." Leaning in even closer, his shaky hand grabbed her hand that was holding the hair pin. His breath was so heavy that she could feel it shift some strands of hair.

"Don't you-" Stranding up abruptly, she pushed him down onto the ground and towered over him. "-dare touch me!" Staring down at him, her face was stern. She knew deep down that this might have just been his way of trying to be nice, but that didn't warrant for him to touch her, especially when she had already rejected him, twice.

"T-T-That face!" Holding himself back up on the palms of his hands, his face flushed even more. "It's terrific!" Like everything suddenly came rushing back to him, his eyes darkened. "It's you from that brothel a few years ago! I paid good money for you, and you gave me this!" Looking down, he showed her the top of his balding head to a small scar that was left- persumably from the vase she cracked over his head.

"Oh my? Did I do that? I think you're mistaken sir." Slowly and calmly, Fuu brought her feet up, and hooked a finger around the straps of each shoe, removing them. "-But I gotta go! Bye bye!" Making a mad dash, it all made sense to her now. Why everything seemed so familiar to her. Why the stores, the signs, and even the atmosphere itched at her. She had been here before, three years ago. She was freed from the brothel, but not really by any legal means. She had been put in there for "breaking" a vase and a gang tossed her in there. If her memory did serve her right, Mugen and Jin got into a rather large fight, and somehow the boss of the entire operation got killed. So there was never any worry of being found again, but if that pervert recognized her, there was no garauntee that there wasn't someone else in charge looking for any reason at all to get another girl working.

"Oof!" Falling onto her rear end, the street showed no mercy in her landing. From the surprised reaction that wasn't from her, she knew she had run into somebody. "So sorry! I'm really clumsy!"

Also sitting on her rear, was a woman with her dark hair tied up on top of her head. Her body was slightly sideways as she propped herself up with one hand and tightly held onto a yellow sling that was tied around her back and held something to her chest. "It's okay, I'm fine." a small, crackling cry broke what would have been the start of Fuu's apology speech. The woman quickly cradled the body that was held to her chest, rocking herself and gently bouncing her arms and what they held. She tried to soothe with a soft and gentle "Shhh".

Shoulders growing stiff, Fuu felt even worse now. She had just knocked over a woman and her infant. Guilt spread throughout her. Slipping back on her shoes, Fuu stood up and offered her hand to the mother. "Please, let me help you."

Pulling one hand away from her new soothed infant, the woman extended her slim, manicured hand and placed it onto Fuu's. "Thank you so much-" Turning her face up, the woman's deep and matured brown eyes met Fuu's large and bright ones. The woman froze in place, staring at Fuu's features, but ultimately, landing on her eyes once again. "-Fuu?"

With just the call of her name, it came flooding back to Fuu. It was the face she couldn't remember, the one that went with the gentle and soft voice. "Osuzu."

* * *

Rolling a now hardened booger between his thumb and index finger, Mugen wiped it off on the closest sleeve that wasn't his. He hand already fought twice at this point. They weren't even worth the effort it took, they had no technique (not that Mugen had any either), but all they did was try to swing a punch, and tackle him down. And unfortunately for them, it would take a hell of a lot more than that to do him in. In one match, two people were disqualified because they both fell out of the ring in an attempt at bringing one another to the ground. So that left nine men left in his grouping, even for someone as uneducated as him, he knew that it didn't work for groups of two. Somehow, they would have to make it work. Only two or more fights and he could be walking away with the 20%. And if he chose, two more after that, he would have 60%.

 _'I guess when I'm done here I should go meet up with the brat..'_ Wiping some saliva off of his mouth, he had done a good job at avoiding any blows to the face. He knew that if he showed up with a broken and bruised face he wouldn't hear the end of it. Even if it was for a competition she would go on some rant about his "sense of responsibility", or rather, lack of.

"Ah, shit!" Scratching at his brain, he couldn't remember where the meeting place was supposed to be. Did she even tell him? Or was he just not paying attention?

"What a cocky little bastard, eh?" With a hard jab of an elbow, the bristle haired man stood next to Mugen. His eyes were watching the events playing in the ring that Mugen was too distracted to pay attention to. "-That's the winner of Group 1 apparently. Said he wasn't ready to be done and gave up his winnings to fill in a spot in our group." Crossing his arms, bristle hair narrowed his eyes, clearly focusing on the fight. "-Pay attention, 'cause one of us will be fighting the winner of this match.."

Somehow ignoring his urge to elbow the guy back, Mugen looked to the ring that was meant for his weight class. During the time he was lost in thought, two fights had already happened, which left the three of them to fight. But obviously they weren't going to allow a three way fight, so something had to be done. And as annoying as bristle hair was, Mugen liked his sense of strength. Even though there were two other competitors left for them, he was counting them out- just like Mugen had. It seemed all the other groups had already finished, and the "victors" decided. But in the ring stood the tattooed freak and some short guy that Mugen didn't see before.

"So that little guy already won but came back for more?" Mugen came to the conclusion that he was either stupid, or he knew that he could easily win. There was no way the guy was taller than Fuu, so it was clear that the tattoo freak would have a reach advantage. From paying a little bit of attention, Mugen knew that tattoo freak had a great defence, and he only moved when he needed too. He made his opponent come to him and only attacked between his defence when there were holes in his opponents stance. He was smart, he conserved his energy. He was the complete opposite of Mugen and bristle hair. Both of them were strong attackers, going hard from the start. But Mugen was confident that he was faster than him. Bristle hair seemed to know what he was doing, like he trained somewhere for hand to hand combat like this. But he still managed to get knocked a few in the face and sides- but then again, so did Mugen. The two of them had scrapes and cuts on their knuckles already. They would both probably be a bloody mess after they were done with each other.

"HOLY SHIT, DID YOU SEE THAT?!"

"Huh, what?!" Focusing back on the fight, it was already over. Taking a bow was the short guy, with the tattooed freak flipped onto his back outside of the ring. Dust and debris still filled the area surrounded the defeated foe from the impact on the ground. It seemed everyone was still in shock, and the entire arena was silent. "What the hell, I missed it!"

"Well, buddy, looks like it's our turn." Lacing his fingers together, bristle hair, extended his arms, bending his fingers backwards, cracking every single knuckle.

"You bet your ass it is."

Standing opposite of bristle hair, they were once again "graced" with the rules. The crowd seemed to close in on the single ring, since there were no other fights to watch. Earlier, because there had been other fight's happening, Mugen didn't notice the onlookers as much, but now he felt like a spectacle. Well, more of one anyway. The noise made by the crowd overpowered the announcers, but somehow all the chatter and cheering got Mugen's blood rushing. Who knows, maybe there was a hot piece of ass out there watching him.

Bringing both fists up and then flexing his arms, bristle hair cheered back to the crowd. He seemed to gather a few high pitch responses from some girls.

"Are ya here for show, or to fight?" The lowering sun felt nice on Mugen's exposed torso, but he wanted to get this started. This was the first fight of the day that he was really looking foward to.

"Hm?" Standing up straight, bristle hair finally lost his smile. "I could ask you the same thing." Readying himself, he placed his feet shoulder width apart and kept his elbows tucked in tight, and held his fists in front of him. He was ready, unlike his opponent ,Mugen.

Shoulders still slumped, Mugen stood there as slack as he usually would. There was no need to stance himself, that was for people with technique, and training. Mugen didn't need any of that for something like this, it was hit or be hit. There wasn't as much as a rush as there was when it was _kill or be killed_ , but hell, he didn't need a damn technique for that so why would he need one for this?

"Yea, I'm ready-" There was no point in standing around waiting, taking the first opportunity, Mugen closed the small gap between them, bringing in a right hook, only to be blocked.

A knee was immediately brought into Mugen's gut, which he tried to block by raising his own knee, but his timing was off. It didn't hurt as bad as getting shot or sliced but he knew it would hurt tomorrow. Even so, Mugen didn't back away from him- he wouldn't win a fight by backing off. TIme and time again, Mugen tried to get him in the temple or the jaw- or hell, even square in the nose, but bristle hair would bring his hand between his face and Mugen's in a circular motion, completely deflecting the attempts. But bristle hair was faster than Mugen was expecting, between blocks he managed to get a few strikes in on Mugen's sides.

"You're starting to piss me off-" Clenching his jaw at just the right moment, a quick but firm "rabbit" punch was placed on his nose. The warm tingling sensation was instant, and the warmth of fresh blood fell from his nose. "Fuck it!" Jerking his head back, this move was a lose-lose for both involved, but damn, he needed to do something. Slamming his head forward, his forehead met with bristle hair's. The two of them finally separated, embracing their own faces to ease through the pain. The crowd seemed to have a mixed reaction about the move, gaining some "Oooohs", and surprised laughter.

Taking advantage of the disoriented state of his opponent, Mugen ran at him, finally placing a right hook and then an upper cut afterwards. Bringing his leg up, he had hoped to get the guy in the side but his opponent recovered faster than he was hoping and caught Mugen's foot.

"Nice try-" Securing Mugen's foot between his arm and his side, bristle hair made it so Mugen couldn't move.

"Could say the same to you!" Reaching up, Mugen grabbed the tall spiked hair of his opponent and used his grip to help in the momentum of his other fist slamming time and time again into his face until the grip on Mugen's leg loosened. Freeing his leg, Mugen let go of his opponents hair and was met with a hard, breath taking, punch to the side. Falling down with the momentum, Mugen caught himself on his knees and one hand. Wrapping one arm around, he held onto himself as his lungs tried to take in the air they wanted but his body just wouldn't allow for it. His back was facing bristle hair, but the shadows still allowed for Mugen to see what was coming for him.

A clear dark form stretched along the ground. Elbows kept in and tight, one leg down and sturdy, and the other swung up into the air, about to come down on the back of Mugen's head.

"Shit-" Rolling out of the way, Mugen barely dodged the attack, but he was followed with kick and kick again. Continually rolling on the ground to dodge, he wasn't given a moments break between attempts. The dirt and dust on the ground began to be kicked up between Mugen rolling around, and the hole creating kicks of bristle hair. "-Fuck off already!" Landing on his back, Mugen brought his own feet up, catching the back part of his opponents knee, stopping the next assault. Quickly reading the situation, Mugen managed to swing his shoulders against the ground, thus forcing the rest of his body to follow suit. Spinning on the ground with his legs up, Mugen kicked the other leg out from under bristle hair.

Using the momentum of his own body, Mugen pushed his hands against the ground, hoisting himself back up onto his feet. He finally towered over his opponent- he had the upper hand. Smirking down at the still disoriented man, Mugen was getting ready to get ontop of him and pumble that shit eating grin.

"PARTICIPANT MUGEN, DISQUALIFIED!"

"Hah?!" Distracted, Mugen looked off to the short man that was at the registration table earlier that day- somehow, over the large crowd the man's voice reached him.

"-For violation of Rule No. 1. Usage of weapons!"

"Bull shit! I ain't use no damn weapons!" Going to turn himself, a foot met his gut, making him stagger and fall back down to his knees.

"-I call bullshit too." Wiping his mouth, and rising back to his feet, bristle hair didn't pull his gaze away from Mugen. He wanted to finish this.

Walking over to the towards them, the short man, escorted by four other larger men, cleared his throat and pointed down at Mugen's feet. "Shoes are permitted, but not with _those_ enhancements."

 _'Fuck...'_ He didn't even think about the steel he had forged on the bottom of his getas. Kicking them off of his feet, Mugen shrugged. "Can we keep going now?"

"Shota, you're the winner. You will move on. And you, Mugen, are disqualified. Try again next year." Grabbing onto Shota/bristle hair's wrist, the short man lifted it up, raising both of their arms- officially declaring him the victor. The crowd seemed confused, and other's upset over losing their money in another bet.

Kicking his shoes, Mugen flipped them so they were the right side up once again and slipped them back onto his feet. Pressing one nostril closed with his thumb, he puffed out a large glob of blood. There was no use in arguing the matter, although he very easily could, and from the look on Shota's face, he wasn't ready for this the over yet either, and it wasn't like short stuff there would be able to break the two of them up. But now, he was all out of money.

"For fuck sakes!" Making his way out of the circle, the crowd instantly parted for him, but he was met with mixed reviews. Some called him a cheater, other's saying he was cheated out of his money, and other's just wanted the next fight to start. Finding where he left his shirt, he quickly slipped his arms through it but before he could get his haori on, a hand placed itself on his shoulder, and firmly squeezed.

"-You got guts, I've never seen anyone spin on the ground like that before." Displaying his usual grin, Shota gave Mugen a thumbs up.

"-And you got fucking bricks for fists." Shrugging off Shota's hand, Mugen slipped his haori on.

Laughing, Shota rubbed the back of his neck. "I didn't sign up for this just for shits and giggles. I came to win-" Noticing some female onlookers, Shota offered them a wink. "-and the girls. You should stay, until after my next fight. I'll buy ya a drink afterwards."

"How bout you just give me my money back after you kick that shorty's ass?"

"Come on! Did you see the reaction we got during the fight? The girls can't look away."

Pulling at his collar, Mugen scratched at his collar bone. Some blood had fell and crusted on his skin and was starting to irritate him. Curious, he looked over at the girls Shota had just winked at. When his eyes met theirs they giggled in their group and started to act coy, or cute, or some stupid shit. But for some reason, Mugen just found it annoying. The giggling, the hush hush whispers they exchanged, the squeeling- annoying. Maybe it was because that's what they were, girls, plain girls, not exactly his type. He liked women, big busted, red lipped, and hips that don't stop.

"They're cute aren't they?" Rubbing his chin, Shota was now standing next to Mugen, looking at the girls.

Shrugging his shoulders, they weren't exactly ugly, but they weren't exactly sparking anything in him either. "-Seen better. Maybe with some actual tits they wouldn't be half bad." Just thinking about breasts brought a smile onto Mugen's face.

"Really? I guess I can't complain about tits, but well..I like my women petit. Small, and slender."

 _'Petit..I guess the girl is petit...but her hips and ti-'_ Shaking his head, he knocked the thought right out of him before he could finish it. "Fuck..I gotta go." The day had already wasted away, and the sun set was stretching across the sky, the brat was probably already waiting for him, lost, or something had happened. There was no in between with her, but..where the hell was he supposed to meet her?

"Huh, where?"

"Gotta go find my girl."

* * *

"My husband said he was patrolling here. Are you sure you don't want me to send him to find your friend? You could come back with me and wait." Squeezing Fuu's hand, Osuzu had one arm wrapped around her baby as they looked at the backs of the people in the tightly packed crowd.

Holding Osuzu's hand back, Fuu liked the warmth she felt. She often wondered what happened to Osuzu after they left three years ago. Who knew they would find their way to each other again. "I'm sure, I just have a feeling I'll find him here." A feeling was an understatement. Fuu was certain Mugen was here, it had his name written all over it. It was some kind of "strong man" competition, but it was more like a legalized street fight. At least that's how Osuzu put it. She didn't go into much detail about her, her husband or what they do, but from what she was able to gather up, it seemed like they travelled the province quite a bit. But they were around for this event the last two years.

Holding onto Fuu's hand more firmly, Osuzu lead the way into the crowd. People didn't seem to pay them any attention. They were too focused on the fight, or the lack of. Fuu couldn't see what was happening but she managed to get glances over peoples shoulders and heads, there were 6 or 7 people in the ring at the moment, and all they were doing was standing around. Some people were yelling something about cheating, other's saying let the fight continue. Other's were ruthless, yelling profanities and threats. They weaved and circled around most of the crowd already but Osuzu couldn't quite seem to find her husband, and Fuu couldn't find Mugen.

"Osuzu, what does your husband look like? Maybe we could split up and look?"

"Perhaps. Or you could go look for your friend. It should be easy for me to find my husband, or at least one of the members.."

"Okay!" Grabbing Osuzu's hand in both of hers, Fuu held it tightly. "We'll meet back at the entrance, whether we find them or not, okay?"

Nodding her head, Osuzu, and Fuu went in opposite directions. Pushing her way between two men that were pressing against each other's shoulders, Fuu managed to get out of the large crowd. She looked at the backs of all the people again, trying to catch a glimpse of red, but there was nothing. At first she thought maybe she saw Mugen in the fighting ring, but from what she could see, none of them were wearing a red haori.

"Mugen, where are you?!" Sticking to the outside of the crowd, Fuu walked around, stopping every now and then to get up on her tippy toes, trying to look over the crowd. "Muuuuugen!" Holding her hand open next to her mouth, she hoped that he or maybe someone who saw him would hear her.

"This way! He's going to the gate!"

"Excuse us, Miss."

Rushing past Fuu, some men in matching blue uniforms had their hands ready on the handle of their blades. Waiting to draw when they found whoever it was that they were looking for.

"Sheesh...they're in an awfully big rush.." Adjusting her bag on her shoulder again, she peeked down the top of her kimono at the napping Momo nestled in her bust. Momo seemed to be napping more and more these last few days. Which usually only happened in colder weather but for whatever reason, Momo seemed to be increasingly tired. "Come on Momo-san...let's go find Mugen.." Looking up from the material, she gently patted Momo from overtop of her clothes.

Following the path of the crowd again, the curve of bodies started to grow closer and closer to one of the arena walls.

"Excuse me." Trying to wedge herself through, no one would budge. "I said-" Bringing her fist in to her chest, Fuu kept her elbow out for the attack. "-Excuse me!" Jabbing a few people, Fuu managed to push her way through the people and the closeness of the wall. "Jeez, jerks." Fixing her kimono she was a foot or two away from a series of wooden benches that were placed in an "open square" pattern. Closing in on three sides, and keeping the fourth side that was directed towards the fight rings open.

"Did you enjoy the show?" A foot was propped on the nearest bench, and a wide smile flashed Fuu's way. He was sweaty, his face must have taken a few hits, and although he wasn't swollen, there was some yellow discolouration on certain spots of his face. The hair that wasn't shaved down was messy, falling down in different directions. His arm was propped up on the knee that was perched on the bench. She couldn't get a view of his other hand, but the one that fell next to his knee was cut up and turning shades of purple and red. And finally...he was shirtless.

Pulling her eyes from him she looked close to him, but not directly at him. "Huh? Ah, I didn't see it. I'm looking for someone, I think he-"

"That's a shame. I won, just so ya know.." Taking his foot down, he lost the large smile, and scratched at his neck. "But...you don't care. Who ya here looking for?"

She felt a bit guilty at his words, but it was true. She didn't know who he was and she really didn't care, but he seemed to be the only one willing to give her any attention. "His name is Mugen. I think he might have been here."

"Mugen? Ohh.." Looking Fuu up and down, his wide grin came back. "So, you're his gal. You're pretty cute."

"His gal? What?"

Lacing his fingers behind his head, his elbows went up into the air and he sighed. "Wish I had a cute girl like you cheering me on."

Feeling her brow twitch, her face instantly went into waitress mode. It was the one when she forced herself to be polite. "Where'd Mugen go?"

Realizing there was really no chance, he just pointed across the crowd to where the entrance was. "Said he had to go get his sword, and you apparently." Probably getting the exact reaction he was wanting, Fuu quickly turned her back and walked away listening to his laugh.

"Thank you!" Bowing a few times, she wished him luck on his next fight and then began working at getting back to the entrance. Quickly pushing her way past everyone once again, she found it easier to get out than what it was to get in. Clenching her jaw, she pursed her lips to keep from smiling. For some reason what that guy said really seemed to hit something in her. She felt like she was walking on air, and her destination was Mugen.

"Fuu!" Waiting around the "bend" of the crowd and near the entrance was Osuzu. "Did you find your friend?"

Shaking her head, Fuu tucked another strand of hair behind her ear. "No, not yet. But he should be near here. Did you find your husband?"

"Yes, he's just a bit preoccupied right now." Gently patting the back of her baby, Osuzu started to bounce herself slightly. "-There's a man here that they've been trying to track down for quite some time. But he's putting up a bit of a fight, so we should stay here until it's clear."

"Huh, where are they?" Sticking her head up, Fuu looked over Osuzu, trying to get a glimpse of the action. Just outside the entrance, men in blue caught her eye. It wasn't exactly the colour that stood out to her, but the symbol that was sewn onto the backs of their matching uniforms. "That's..that's it! Who are they!?" Pointing like a child, all Fuu could do was stare.

"Them? That's my husband and some of the other men, they're-"

"I've been looking for them all day! They're the reason Mugen and I came here!" Pulling out her half of the paper, Fuu showed it to Osuzu. "I can't wait to rub it in Mugen's face that I found them first!" Doing a complete 180, she was now excited to find Mugen for an entirely different reason. Who would have thought that after all that effort, that she would not only find Osuzu but the mysterious owners of the symbol as well.

"Fuu, did you say, Mugen?"

"Yes! Do you remember that guy that was with Jin and I a few years ago? Well, we are travelling together again, and he-" Over Osuzu's shoulder, Fuu's eyes caught sight of the men in blue once again, they seemed to be scurrying about. Their swords were drawn but they weren't attacking, but whoever it was that they were trying to surround sure was. Part of the entrance still covered most of the scene, with the angle Fuu was standing at, the edge of the wall cut off the rest of the view. But every now and then she could see a sword swing, and a foot fly up- keeping everyone away. "Ah..I see. Excuse me Osuzu."

"Wait, Fuu!"

Starting off slowly, Fuu made her way towards the entrance, and the man made circle of blue robes. Her speed increased and the distance closed, and sure enough, stuck in the middle was Mugen. Why was she not surprised? And it was now a safe bet that they weren't going to hire him, and from the looks of things, they have enough people as it was- so why the flyer? None of the men in blue were attacking Mugen but every single one of them had their swords drawn and weren't moving to let him through. Mugen also had his sword drawn and knowing him, he would attack any moment. The fact he was only trying to get them to move was a big improvement on his previous behaviour.

Bringing her left leg up, Fuu pulled one of her heeled sandals off. "STOP IT!" Widing her arm back, Fuu launched the sandal into the circle, knocking Mugen on the back of the head- halting him and all the men. "MUGEN!" All heads turned to look at Fuu, who interrupted.

Most seemed surprised and confused on why a girl in a dusty pink kimono was interrupting something like this, and then there was Mugen. Who seemed nothing less than pissed off.

"What the hell was that for?!" Bending down he picked up her shoe and threw it back at her, not holding back any strength.

Stepping out of the way, her shoe hit some bystander in the background- but she would worry about that later. "These are them, Mugen!" Pulling out her part of the paper she waved it. "The symbol, it's theirs! They're the-"

"We are subordinates of the Kawara Clan. And you, Mugen, are wanted in conviction to aiding in the misdeeds of Rikiei Nagatomi, leading to our previous leaders death." The largest man of the group spoke up, but sheathed his sword. His hair was pulled back tightly into a high ponytail which bushed out the other end. His lips were dark and thick, and his face seemed to be stuck in a permanent scowl. His skin was tanned but not as dark as Mugen's. "-This is not up for negotiation. Either come with us now, or let your life end here."

Spitting at the large man's feet, Mugen barely missed his target. Between the cut in his mouth and the small amount still coming from his nose, blood had mixed in with his saliva. "Like hell I-"

Somehow, running between the circle of men, Fuu jumped at Mugen. Wrapping both of her arms around his one, she made him stumble a bit. "-We will! We'll go with you!" Looking from the large man, and back to Mugen all she could do was nod her head and hoped that Mugen would trust her.

* * *

What the hell was he supposed to do now? His sides ached, and his nose still tingled. He probably looked like a bloody mess, and some how Fuu managed to find him. She was always calling him reckless, and hot heated but yet she ran next to him like this was nothing but child's play. Sure these guys said they wouldn't do anything as long as he followed them, but that could just be a front. For all he knew, they could just be planning to lead him away from the crowd and off him the first chance they get. And who the hell is this Nagatomi guy they're talking about?

With a large sigh, Mugen eased his grip when Fuu seemed to hold onto his arm tighter. It was a good distraction from the smug look on thick lipped guy's face, but it wasn't the time for this kind of thing. Shrugging the arm that Fuu was latched too, he tried to shake her off but she only seemed to hold on tighter. Finally looking away from the large man, Mugen looked down to Fuu.

Her large brown, doe eyes were staring at him. _'Don't be lookin' at me like that, for fuck sakes..'_

Why didn't she get it? Why didn't she get that they were more than likely going to kill him, and if she stayed, they would most likely kill her too? The kids earlier said the "Kawara" clan were nothing more than glorified criminals, which meant they were yakuza- surprise, surprise.

"So, what's gonna happen if I go with ya? Just prolonging my execution, or?"

"That's for the heir to decide, not me."

Spitting another gob on the ground, the copper taste was slowly getting weaker- or he was just getting use to it. Alongside the wet spot on the ground, Mugen dropped his sword. It was either he give it up now or they take it from him as soon as it's sheathed. One of the men clad in blue quickly went it and retrieved the surrendered weapon.

"Brat..you better be right about this, or else I'm taking you down with me"

In an instant, Fuu was pulled from Mugen's side and the backs of his knees were kicked in, dropping him to the ground. And like a heard of wild animals (well trained ones at that), the men were on top of Mugen, securing him to ensure there would be no funny business. They tied his hands behind back, and continued the same rope down towards his feet, which would only allow him to shuffle slowly.

"WHAT THE HELL, GET THE FUCK OFF MMPHH-" a thicker rope tied around Mugen's face, keeping him from talking.

Fuu watched on horrified, regretting her decision to go with them, but Osuzu's soft hand squeezed her shoulder.

"It's all for show Fuu. Your friend will be fine..."

Nodding was all Fuu could do. She didn't know what to say, she wanted to yell at them and push them away from him. Slowly pulling her hand off of her tanto blade, she had to fight every voice inside of her that was telling her to cut Mugen free. She just had to keep faith in herself, and in Osuzu.


	13. Chapter 12 - Where Yellow Flowers Grow

**Author's Note at the bottom!**

 *** Thank you for reading, and I hope you all enjoy! ***

* * *

 **Chapter 12 - Where the Yellow Flowers Grow**

Sitting in a freshly cleaned kimono, Fuu's stomach was in knots. Normally she would be enjoying this, a hot meal, fresh clean clothes, and even her own room. But she couldn't. As soon as they arrived at what she assumed was the Kawara estate, she was separated from Mugen. On the way over, she had so many questions she wanted to ask Osuzu but the timing wasn't right. So they walked in silence the entire time. Osuzu was feeling tired, and she needed to feed the baby so someone that Fuu could only describe as a servant, showed Fuu "her" room. The size of the room amazed her, it was larger than most shacks or hotel rooms that they've stayed in.

She had to admit, for having such a large estate, a lot of people sure didn't like to mention them. If she would have continued on her path she would have passed right by this place without knowing this was the place she was looking for. Surely some, if not all, of the people she had asked today knew of them, or knew where to find them. But yet, no one told her anything. The estate was quite large, so there was no missing it. Although it was in the middle of the city, it was quiet here, like she was somewhere else completely.

Plopping down on her back, the soft futon cushioned her perfectly. It felt nice to let her hair down again, but she couldn't seem to relax. Squeezing her hair stick tightly in her hand, her grip was as tight as her stomach. She should be grateful for her association with Osuzu, or who knew what would have happened to her. She would have been separated from Mugen without a doubt. Most likely she would still be wandering the streets, looking for him, but she did find him. And yet, she felt lost.

"Mugen.." Staring up at the ceiling, her eyes traced along the wooden grooves, but didn't quite take in all the details. Whatever she saw was out of her mind as soon as she saw it. It was unsettling, even though Mugen was at the estate, she felt uneasy about it all. She really had no idea where he was, who he was with or what they were doing to him. Did she make a mistake by telling him to go along with them? _'They did say they would kill him if they didn't...But..WHAT IF THEY'RE TORTURING HIM NOW?!'_ Rolling around in a fit on the futon, her hair and the blanket were now in a mess. _'Don't be ridiculous! If they wanted him dead they wouldn't have brought him here. Argh.'_

Laying on her right side, her back faced the doors. She knew worrying would do her no good, and if she really wanted to feel better she should just get up and find him. Abruptly sitting up, she stared at the door. Technically, no one told her she couldn't leave the room. Lightly biting her bottom lip, Fuu rose up to her feet and reached for the notch in the door to open it.

 ** _Knock Knock_**

"Miss, are you still awake?"

Falling back onto her rear, her heart was beating so fast it hurt. Whoever was on the other side of her door had a deep, manly voice. But who was it?

"Y-Yes!"

"Pardon the intrusion." Sliding open the door, the thick lipped man that had arrested Mugen earlier was sitting on his feet. He had an intensity on his face that made Fuu uncomfortable, it was like he was going to yell at her any moment.

Swallowing the nervous lump in her throat, she fixed the way she was positioned and she sat on her feet in a similar manner to him. "How can I help you-?"

"Ishimatsu. My name is Ishimatsu, and I am the Commanding Officer of the Kawara Clan.." Clearing his throat, his face seemed to soften. Placing his hands down on the ground in front of him, he raised his buttocks and placed his forehead down with his hands. "And I am forever grateful for you saving my wife three years ago."

Stunned, Fuu watched as he stern looking, large man bowed to her. "Your, wife?"

"Hai!" He roared back with intensity like he was answering to a drill sergeant. "My wife, Osuzu. If it wasn't for you, she would have taken her life three years ago when..when my boss cheated her father out of money." Pressing himself into the floor more, his intensity never let up. "If it weren't for you, this dirtied man never would have known this kind of happiness."

"You're Osuzu's husband?" Finally, her heart seemed to settle and her shoulders slacked. "I didn't do much really."

Scratching her neck, Fuu realized that she and Osuzu didn't talk about their time in the brothel, and that Fuu never thanked her. They were placed there at the same time so it was natural for the two of them to become close. Fuu was thankful for how naive she used to be, how she let her immaturity bubble to the surface whenever she felt pressured. It would make her feel better, being able to laugh, or make light of most situations, and it made other's feel at ease as well- and apparently Osuzu was one of those people. Even though Fuu acted the way she did for her own sake, to make herself feel better about being abandoned and then conned into working her life away, Osuzu was caught in her bright smile and silly behaviour. So would it be wrong if she accepted his gratitude?

"I should be the one thanking her. I mean, none of the other girls there would talk to me. I was young, I was disruptive, I wouldn't cooperate, and I was going to do anything I could to get out of there. Osuzu, she...she really grounded me, and made me feel that if I did get stuck there, it wouldn't be so bad because she would be there."

Sitting up straight, his face seemed flush, obviously embarrassed about his "submission" to Fuu. Clearing his throat, he tried to remain as stern as before. "I do not expect you to accept any apology I can offer. Just like my wife, you were put there because of a corrupt man, and because I was turning a blind eye."

Nodding, neither one of them were sure on what to say next. Was she supposed to dismiss him? Say she forgives him, or that she accepts his gratitude? The reason for him coming here, other than to talk about Osuzu was beyond Fuu. Even though he claimed to have played a part in the events here three years ago, she couldn't place his face. Where did he really fit in to all of this? He was involved enough that he felt bad about everything that happened, but was it really his burden to carry? And what about Mugen?

It was like, as soon as she found him, he was taken from her again. Maybe they never should have split up, or maybe she should have let Mugen trust in himself. It was for her own selfish reasons that she said they should go with Ishimatsu. She trusted Osuzu, and by association, she trusted in Osuzu's husband. Eyes downcast, Fuu was fighting every urge she had to ask about him.

"I will take my leave now." Getting uncomfortable in the silence, Ishimatsu stood. He towered over her even when she was standing, but the contrast between them now was incredible. "-And that man, his fate is still being decided."

The clank of the door sliding shut left everything else silent. Not bothering to blow out the lanterns in her room, Fuu laid back down, pulling the blanket over her completely. _'His fate huh?..'_ Curling her knees to her chest, she brought the hair stick close to her mouth and closed her eyes, as if she were praying into a charm. _'What is fate anyway?..'_

She hadn't thought about fate since her time in Osaka, back when her eyes caught a glimpse of red sipping on some sake. It was when the cruel reality that the world, or that "fate", had set out for her was taking place as she laid pinned to the ground. The blade that stuck out from her flesh, and the clammy hands that started touching up her legs. But why should your fate be dependant on others? Why do people feel the need to decide the fate of someone else? Why was Mugen's fate being decided for him, by someone that didn't know who he was or all the things he had done. Even though there were countless things about him that she herself didn't know, she knew all she needed to.

With the twitch of her left pinky, Fuu's eyes shot open again. A familiar, yet an almost forgotten sensation overwhelmed her.

 _She was trapped in the vast white once again, completely weightless. It was like her subconscious had paused everything from the last time she was here. Her arm was still extended out in front of her, with a neatly tied red bow on her pinky. The red thread continued out in front of her, leading into the large field of yellow flowers. She hadn't had any dreams in weeks, probably not since the last time she dreamt of this place. So why now of all times? Why was her mind trying to bring her back to a place she found when she was so destroyed?_

 _The large dark faces stared at her, and she at them. They loomed over her like a tall, tall, wall. Finally letting her hand fall back to her side, the red thread brushed against multiple flowers, making them sway. The thread no longer taught, seemed to sway at the same tempo as the flowers._

 _'Wha..what's this feeling?' Grasping at her chest, and clenching her eyes, her heart ached a way it hadn't before. It hurt, it really hurt, so much that she wanted to fall to her knees. But there was no telling that if she were to fall, just how far would she go? Who was to say that she wouldn't find herself falling out of the vast white, away from the flowers and falling further from the end of the line. With a harsh tug of the string, Fuu's eyes shot open again, but the white, and the flowers were gone._

 _Her surroundings had been switched, and she found herself reliving the events of earlier today. She followed the group of men in blue, along side Osuzu in silence. Whispers and murmurs of those they passed still echoed in her mind, they were just curious as they were impressed. Their beloved lawful vigilantes seemed to have reprimanded another criminal. The so called, "criminal", swayed as he tried to shuffle along with the fast pace of the guards. They were making a spectacle of him, having him bound in ropes and were leading him by another that tied around his neck. And so, his fatigued and beaten body swayed with each shuffle of his feet, his knees buckled at other times._

 _She didn't want to look at him, it made her feel empty, like she was nothing but a shell of a person._

 _The rope, just like the thread, swayed with his movement. The crunch of the rolling gravel beneath his feet screamed at her louder than anything ever before. She felt the weight of those ropes on her own body. The frayed strands that dug into him, cut into her. The whispers and murmurs of the pedestrians, condemned her. His punishment, left her hollow. And just as fast as her surroundings changed the first time, the busy street and dirty buildings broke apart, falling down into a ground and earth that was no longer there._

 _She watched as everyone fell apart, and the ground beneath her fell out from under her. Osuzu, and her baby, gone, the guards, the sky, all were gone. But still in front of her, a few large strides away, he stood._

 _"Mugen!" Reaching out her hand, Mugen, just like everything else, fell into a million pieces and continued to fall down further than her eyes could see into the vast white below. "MUGEN!"_

Bursting up, her body reacted before her mind could process that it was a dream. Her eyes darted all around, remembering that she was alone in her own room, the lanterns had already burned out, leaving her in the dark. Adjusting her feet, she could feel that the blanket that once covered her had bunched up at the bottom of the futon. Her body was damp from sweat, making the kimono cling to her back and some hair to her forehead.

Alarmed by the sudden movement, Momo had also burst up, and scurried up onto Fuu. The squirrel pressed its nose against Fuu's chin, like a kiss.

"Oh..Momo-san." Sitting up straight, Fuu crossed her legs and caught Momo in her arms. Stroking Momo's soft fur always made Fuu feel better, but it wasn't very often that Momo would let it happen. With every slow and gentle stroke of the grey fur, Fuu could feel her heart calm down. "It was just a bad dream Momo-san...just a bad dream is all."

* * *

Slowly sliding the door open, Fuu stepped out into the hall. She held her shoes in one hand, trying to be as quiet as possible. After she woke up, she wasn't able to fall asleep again, but she laid down until her dark surroundings grew lighter. She needed to find Mugen, she needed to talk to him, and most of all, she wanted to see that he was okay. And if things were bad, she would break him out of here. She changed out of the borrowed kimono when she found her freshly cleaned one folded outside of the door- to which she was thankful for.

The enclosed hall blocked all of the light from the barely peeking sun, but it was good enough for Fuu. All the late nights of walking until they found a good enough spot to sleep was finally paying off, her eyes seemed to be adjusting to the dark quicker these days. Now, the question was, which way should she go? When she was brought here, her mind was still in shambles over what they had done to Mugen that she didn't pay attention while they guided her to her room. Looking to her left and then to her right, she glanced down at Momo who was perched on her shoulder.

"Well, Momo-san, where do you think he is?" Her voice was barely a whisper but it was more than enough for Momo to hear. She really didn't know where to start, but standing here wasn't going to do any good. Deciding on left, she walked carefully, trying to avoid any creeks from the floorboards. She stretched her legs as far as they would go as she stepped. Gingerly placing her toes down, she didn't let any other part of her feet touch. The different shoji doors all blended together and the grains of the wood on the floor acted like a map for her. Following the lines of the wood, Fuu found herself in hallway after hallway, but she didn't have the nerve to peek into any of the doors. They had enough ropes on him earlier to hold down a horse so she was sure it as safe to assume that Mugen wasn't getting the same treatment as her. So if she were to look in any of the rooms it would just bring her trouble. Now, if there was a room with guards in front of it, that would probably be the one with Mugen in it.

Making a right turn, her closed off and narrowed view finally opened as she reached an engawa. Placing a hand on a wooden beam, she couldn't help but relax her body against it as her eyes took in the beautiful colours creeping into the sky. Though most of the sky was still darkened, the outline of the clouds were defined and slowly bled into a mosaic of purples, oranges and yellows. The wall around the estate cut off her view of the sun, but the pure light made its way over the top.

Sunsets and sunrises were essentially the same thing, but for whatever reasons, they looked so different in her eyes. Sunrises were mostly made up of purples and yellows, with the transitional oranges but somehow, sunrises held hues of red.

Reaching to her obi, she found where she had stuck her hair stick and gently rolled the jade bead between her fingers. _'Red..'_

"You're up awfully early, or have you not gone to bed yet?" A light laugh pulled Fuu from admiring the colours in the sky and turned her attention to a young man just down the engawa from her. Momo, not wanting any part of the new development, jumped from Fuu's shoulder and climbed up the wooden beam until she was out of sight.

The man seemed to be around the same age as her but she couldn't be sure. He was taller than her but not as tall as Mugen with his getas on. His skin was olive and clear of any blemishes, scars and facial hair. His eyes were brown, and his hair was about the same colour as hers. It was slicked back and pulled into a bun on the back of his head. His face was kind and the smile on his face was gentle, and just like all the other men Fuu had seen he was clad in blue but the colours on his uniform were in opposite sequence. Instead of a light blue trim on a dark material, he was wearing a lighter material and a dark trim.

"Ah, no, I couldn't sleep." She wasn't sure what to say, or what to make of him. Perhaps he was just a rookie, he was young after all, and he was dressed differently.

Laughing again, the man scratched the back of his neck. "I have the same problem when things are tense like this."

"What do you mean, tense?" Knitting her brows together, she instantly assumed the worse.

"That's your friend that they brought in yesterday, right?" He took a few steps closer to her but turned to face the wall and rising sun, leaving his side open to her. "Are you worried about him?"

"Pfft, who would worry about that jerk? I just needed some air is all." Crossing her arms, she stuck her nose up in the air, trying to sound as convincing as possible. "But-" Slacking her arms again and looking back to the colours in the sky, she bit at her bottom lip. "-I guess I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little curious on how he's doing.."

"Want to see him?" He was finally looking over at her, and his smile never ceased.

 _'See him?'_ Grabbing onto his sleeve with both hands she couldn't help but pull him in her excitement. "Can you take me to him?!" Bright eyed and eager she stared at him, she felt like she finally regained all of her energy.

"Sure, as long as you don't tell Ishimatsu."

* * *

 ***A few moments earlier***

Rubbing his eyes and letting loose a large yawn, he missed a second nights sleep in a row now. His tasks over the last few days seemed to have piled up despite his strict work schedule. He hardly took any breaks, maybe to eat some meals but other than that, it was constant. Tonight, or rather, last night, was especially busy because of that man Ishimatsu brought in.

Standing up, he placed his hands on his lower back and stretched, popping out some of the tension that had been building. There was no point in trying to get any sleep now because he would be joining the morning rounds before breakfast and after that further interrogation of that man was going to be taking place. So he might as well go get himself ready for that, maybe go wash his face to try to hide how tired he really was. Rubbing his right hand, he had newly developed blisters on it, but there was no point in complaining about it- after all, he chose to administer the punishment.

Making a right along the engawa, his eyes immediately caught sight of a light pink kimono and a bright yellow obi. It was peculiar, the only woman that was around should have been Osuzu, and she never dressed in such a way. Walking closer and closer, the mysterious girl didn't seem to notice him. She was busy looking at something. Following her line of vision, he understood why she seemed so absorbed. The sunrise was reaching over the walls surrounding the large building and was starting to bring bright beautiful colours into the sky.

It was funny, he was always up at this hour and yet he never really bothered to look over to the sky, he was always so busy looking at what was in front of him, and on the next task.

 _'-There was a woman with him, she is an acquaintance of my wife's. So we've put her up in one of the empty rooms.'_

Remembering what Ishimatsu had said, it was safe to assume that this was the woman he was talking about. But why was she up so early? And why was someone like her, with someone like _him?_ That man they brought was covered in scars, cuts and bruises. His hand had been damaged beyond repair and a piece of one of his ears was missing. Then there was the way he talked, the first thing out of his mouth was a threat, and then a series of questions- as if he was the one interrogating them. And then there was this girl.

He was finally close enough to get a good look at her. She was sweet, and cute looking woman, maybe she was about the same age as him. Her brown hair stretched down her back, and her cheeks rosy just like her pouted lips. She was petite, and her shoes were hanging from her thin fingers. Was she trying to sneak around, or she didn't want to wake anyone? Although, you can't always trust outward appearance, the way she had her brows knit and the sense of longing in her eyes- he knew she was a gentle person.

"You're up awfully early, or have you not gone to bed yet?" He didn't know why he talked, perhaps because he knew that if he didn't he would continue to stare at her and eventually she would catch him. For some reason, he was laughing, girls always had that affect on him.

He seemed to have frightened her a bit, and apparently he also startled a small rodent, perhaps a pet that she had with her. The girl seemed to pause, and studied him. Maybe she really was trying to sneak around and was shocked that she was caught? Her large brown eyes darted around a bit, she was trying not to stare at him. She bit her bottom lip, and she fidgeted.

His eyes were drinking in every detail of her, everything she was doing, and he was anticipating her next move.

"Ah, no, I couldn't sleep."

Scratching the back of his neck, he could feel his face growing hot. How long had it been since he really talked to a woman, apart from Osuzu like this? A few months maybe? He didn't usually have time for idle chit chat like this, and talking to a girl was just different than talking to any of the men. Ishimatsu was difficult to talk to but over the last few years, he had gotten use to his cold front.

"I have the same problem when things are tense like this."

"What do you mean, tense?"

 _'Ah, oh, I made her worried."_ Now what should he say? Maybe something just to confirm who he thinks she is. "That's your friend that they brought in yesterday, right?" It didn't make sense to have a conversation while standing this far back, so taking a couple steps forward his nerves got the best of him. It really had been awhile since he talked to a woman. Feeling his face grow warm, he stopped beside her and immediately turned his attention back to the sunrise- maybe it would be easier to talk to her this way. The apples of his cheeks were starting to feel strained, even though it wasn't an overly large smile, he couldn't seem to stop it. "Are you worried about him?"

"Pfft, who would worry about that jerk? I just needed some air is all."

Her voice finally broke out into just more than a tired tone, it was obvious she was lying, but who was he to say anything?

"-But, I guess I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little curious on how he's doing.."

Giving up, he turned his head slightly to look at her. Her eyes weren't downcast like he had expected. Her head was still held up high and she was watching the colours in the sky. The orange and yellow hues were starting to reflect on her face and eyes. "Want to see him? Oof!"

"You can take me to him?!"

In an instant, she was holding onto his sleeve in both hands, throwing him off balance. Were women usually this forward? Osuzu never tugged at him like this, she only ever gave him a gentle pat on the head or shoulder. Or at least she did before he grew taller than her. Was this girl just lacking in "shame', or was this part of her charm? Her large brown eyes, and long lashes were pulling him in deeper.

"Sure, as long as you don't tell Ishimatsu."

* * *

Following close behind the kind stranger, they walked along the engawa until there was a set of stairs that lead onto a stone path that cut through the patchy grounds of the estate. She tried not to stare at him, but she found herself studying his back. She found it strange that he wasn't carrying a weapon around with him like all the other men had. That and his skin looked really clear and clean, even the way he walked was different from them. His steps left little sound, and his back was straight.

"So, what brings you to Nagahama anyway?"

"We found a bogus flyer about a job. So, here we are."

"-And were did you guys come from?"

"Huh? Oh, well, that's hard to say. Before we were here, we were in Fukui. And before that we were in some village, I can't even remember the name of that place. And before that, I was in Osaka." Surprising herself, she was answering his questions honestly. There was really no need to hide anything, well, maybe there was but there was no harm in answering a few innocent questions.

"Wow, you've really been all over, haven't you? Must be tiresome."

"It can be, but..somehow it feels right."

Nodding his head, he wanted to know more. "-And what about your friend? Where's he from?"

"Mugen?" It really wasn't for to say, but when they first met Mugen wouldn't shut up about it. "He was born in the Ryuku Islands. Since then it's really hard to say exactly what he's been doing." Actually, based on the Mugen's behaviour it was easy to tell what he had been up to. Travelling, fighting, gambling, and more fighting.

Stopping for a moment, he stopped and looked at Fuu with wide eyes. He seemed to be more amazed than anything. "He's from the Ryuku Islands?" With a light whistle his eyes look upward, and he nodded his head a bit. "That makes a lot of sense. He's one of a kind, that one." He then turned back around and continued on.

"Wait-" Having stopped when he did, he just raised more questions. "-You've talked to him? I thought you just knew where he was."

Laughing lightly, they turned a corner which lead between the large stone wall and the outside wall of the building. He didn't say anything he just shrugged his shoulders in an exaggerated manner.

"You shouldn't judge a person just because of what you hear. Some people get caught in situations beyond their control." Looking at the stone wall to her left, Fuu extended her arm and let her fingers run across the bumpy, dusty, surface. And to her right, the wooden walls were also within reach, it was a really narrow path. "Where are we going anyway?"

"Oh, just to where we keep those we need for interrogation. Or if we catch someone wanted by the police we keep them in holding until they're collected."

"So, basically you have your own prison here?" Pulling her hand from the stone wall, her fingers felt gritty. Looking down at them, they had a thin layer of dust and dirt on them. _'So Mugen must have been interrogated all night?'_

"I guess you can call it that. It just makes things easier. Gets bad people off of the streets and keeps the people, including us here, safe."

"Mugen's not a bad person.." Mumbling under her breath, she didn't want to start and argument but it needed to be said.

"Not a bad person huh? Didn't you call him a jerk earlier?" Stopping he turned around and arched a brow at her. She sure liked to defend him, maybe they were lovers? Eyeing her again, he found that hard to believe, or maybe she wasn't as innocent as she looked. He would have to look into it later.

"That's because he is! But I can say that because I know him. If he was such a bad guy he never would have helped me three years ago or back in Osaka."

"-And what happened in Osaka?"

Pursing her lips a bit, she thought. Just how much should she tell him? You don't exactly go around telling people you got caught in the middle of a Opium operation and then you ended up burning down part of a forest and a hotel. Then there was the whole ordeal in that village, with the strange "collector" and his gang of misfits.

"I got caught by some thugs, and he just happened to be around, so he helped me." Shrugging her shoulders, it wasn't exactly what happened but it wasn't far from the truth either.

"And what about your family? You just left them?"

"Oh, goodness, no! My mom died when I was 14, and my father..he also passed on when I was 15. It was all thanks to Mugen and Jin that I was able to see him in his final moments. But, that's all in the past now! No use in brooding about it."

"Ah, I see I see..Both of my parents have also passed on." Crossing his arms, he leaned against the dusty stone wall. "-And what about Mugen? Is he your husband, or?"

"Pffft, no! No, no, no. Pshh, no." Why did she keep saying no? Once was enough but yet she found herself struggling for words. A rush of heat grew from her cheeks and all over her face. "Mugen, he's just a friend. As crazy and wild as he might be, he's one of the most dependable people I know." Looking away from the man, she directed her attention to the little bit of path that was left. She was maybe 10 long strides away from the end of the stone wall, where it connected with the other side. There was no gap between the wall that cut the path and the building, maybe a small crack but no one would be able to fit in it.

"Actually, he's right down there." Pointing across from where he was leaning, Fuu back tracked to look.

What she thought was just a wall was actually two large doors that were flush with the rest of the building. The grains of the wooden doors were different than that of the rest of the building- perhaps they were made out of a different kind of wood. There were two hoops, welded onto a steel plate and bolted onto each of the doors. There didn't seem to be any lock on the door either, nor any guards- which was weird considering it was a "prison".

"In there?" Pointing, Fuu looked at him, not entirely believing it.

"Ah, more like, down there." Grabbing one of the hoops, he pulled open one side of the door. From the sound the hinges made, and the sound he made when he started pulling- Fuu figured the door was quite heavy. On the other side were stone stairs that descended into the ground, with dimly lit lanterns hanging from the walls. Taking a step in, he reached for the nearest lantern and took it off of its hook. "Come, watch your step." He offered a hand out to her, to help with the first step.

"Thanks." Accepting his offer, she placed her hand on his, and he gently squeezed it as she reached down for the first step. It was further down than she was expecting. Stumbling a bit, he helped to stabilize her. If it wasn't for him, she was sure she would have tumbled down the entire flight of stairs.

"Woah, watch your step."

Nodding her head, Fuu let him take the lead, because well, she didn't know where she was going. The stairs felt like they went on forever, the way back up would be far more difficult but her time in the mountains will pay off. It was extremely quiet down there, their feet on the stone steps clapped, breaking some of the silence.

"He's just at the end of the hall."

Stepping from the final step, Fuu looked back up from where they came. Since he closed the door behind them, the few lanterns were the only source of light. Continuing on, on either side of here were countless jail rooms with a few large stones between each one separating them. The cells were lined with stone but the bars in front were made of wood. A lantern hung from each stone slab lining the hall, and to keep prisoners from reaching for them, the sides of the front of the cells were closed off with thicker wooden bars so their arms couldn't reach out. For this not being a prison they sure had a lot of cells.

"You guys must interrogate a lot of people."

"Yea, the work here never seems to end. But for now, your friend is the only one we have here."

"Is that why there isn't any guards?" Peaking around his form, she wanted to look down the hallway, but he reached behind him and pushed her back behind him.

Looking over his shoulder at her, he held on finger in front of his mouth and pressed it to his lips. "Shhh.." When she nodded, he turned back to face forward. "I'll need a moment alone with him."

"But Ishimatsu said that he would-"

"Ishimatsu is still asleep, and we'll let him be alone with his wife and child. Now please, go get some fresh air and take a break."

"Yes, thank you, Kawara-dono."

Pressed close to his back, Fuu scrunched herself to be as small as possible so she wouldn't be seen. Looking up at the back of his head, she wasn't sure if she really heard what was just said. _'Kawara-dono?'_

Stepping aside, Kawara, pushed his back against Fuu, also closing her into the wall, so the two guards could leave without seeing her. The two of them both watched as the guards walked down the hall and started their climb up the stairs. Finally stepping away from Fuu, Kawara smiled again and hunched down to be eye level with her.

"Remember, don't tell Ishimatsu that I brought you here. You have a few minutes before we need to go. Alright?"

Nodding quickly, Fuu looked over her shoulder at the cell that the two men were guarding, at the angle she was standing at, she couldn't quite see the inside. She could only see part of the stone wall that lined the cell.

"Go on, he's in there. I'll just be over here, don't mind me." Waving her off, he gave her a light push.

Taking the first step closer the cell, thanks to Kawara, Fuu continued a few steps more until she was directly in front of the cell bars. The bars were made out of finely sanded wood, which were smooth to the touch. Grabbing onto a vertical "bar", she leaned her face in to get a better look. "Mugen?.." As there were no lanterns in the cell, even her well adjusted eyes couldn't make out much of what was on the inside. "Mugen?" Still no response. He wasn't asleep because she couldn't hear his thunderous snores.

Pulling away from the cell, Fuu looked over at Kawara, who had spaced himself from her and was leaning against some of the stone strip a few cells away. Reaching up, Fuu barely managed to reach the lantern hanging between Mugen's cell and the vacant one. It was too thick to fit between the bars but she held it as close as she could.

"Mugen!"

Almost dropping the lantern, Her grip tightened on the wooden post, bending back one of her nails. But she could take care of that later, for now, her eyes looked on in terror at Mugen. Hanging at the back of the cell was Mugen. Cuffs, were closed tightly around his wrists, with a chain connecting the two and attached to a hoop high up on the wall. It made his arms stretch far above his head, and left his legs limply dangling beneath him. From the looks of it, his feet were barely touching the floor, but he had long given up his attempt at supporting himself. His head was hung low, and his shirt along with his haori were missing. His abdomen was filled with bruises, of all size and colours. But dripping down from his feet, creating a brown and red puddle was blood.

"MUGEN, WAKE UP!"

A tired, worn out groan escaped him. "Damn it...what the hell are you doin' here, huh?"

Relieved that he was still conscious, she felt herself relax slightly, but just like when she watched them tie him up like an animal, she was in turmoil. "Are you okay? What did they do to you?" The faint light of the lantern caught something stringing down from Mugen's hidden face. She couldn't pick up on the colour, but based on how it was stretching, she was sure it was a mixture of blood and saliva.

"-Doin' just fuckin' peachy. Never been better.." Slowly raising his head, there weren't any new scars or marks on his face which was surprising. But the bags under his eyes were large and make his eyes look as if they were sinking in. "Now, what the hell are you doin' down here?"

"What do you mean? I was worried about you so Kawara brought me to see-"

"Kawara? That tiny bastard brought you down here alone?"

Glancing over at Kawara, he just shrugged his shoulders. Looking back at Mugen, she didn't see what the problem was, other than the fact he was hanging from a wall in an underground prison cell.

"DAMN IT! How many times do I gotta tell ya to not be so naive! DON'T TRUST ANYONE! Why the hell would you follow someone you don't know, down into a dark place?!"

"BECAUSE I WAS WORRIED ABOUT YOU! AND HE OFFERED TO BRING ME TO SEE YOU! I was willing to take that chance!"

"WELL, DON'T! Worry about yourself!" Groaning, Mugen tried to hold back from coughing but it consumed him. Cough after cough, his back bounced against the stones behind him. "It coulda been them you know."

"Them? What are you even talking about?! If you don't want me here then I'll just leave you here!"

"Good! Then go you brat!"

Placing crossing her arms and being mindful of the lantern, she stepped to the side but then stopped. "No."

Gently squeezing Fuu's shoulder, Kawara came over and stood next to her. "Miss, you shouldn't take his words to heart. He's had a long night, isn't that right, Mugen?"

"Go fuck yourself." Trying to spit at Kawara, Mugen's glob just fell short of the bars.

Nervously smiling, Kawara didn't back off. "I assure you, last night was your atonement for your involvement in my father's death. But it was also because of you that we were able to bring down Nagatomi, which is why you're still alive." Looking down at Fuu, who was by his side, his smile seemed more natural. "I also believe you were there that night, when my father took his life at Nagatomi's gambling ring. You were the dice roller, if I'm not mistaken."

Fuu was still confused, everything he was saying was making sense. She remembered rolling the dice after getting out of the brothel, but other than that, she couldn't place much. Obviously, Kawara was there, but she couldn't remember the many faces that were there.

"But that is finally all in the past now. But, I would like to ask the both of you this.. Why is, Ohno Butadon, looking for you two?" Pulling his hand from Fuu, he reached into the inner fold of his uniform and pulled out two rolled up pieces of paper. Unrolling one, he handed it to Fuu, and keeping the second to himself he unrolled it as well.

Looking down at the flyer in her hand, it had an incredibly detailed drawing of Mugen on it, from the scars on his face, all the way to his deformed ear- it had it all. _'Wanted, Dead or_ Alive..' Looking over to the flyer that Kawara had, it had a drawing of what was supposed to be her. It resembled her younger self more than it did to her now. It wasn't as detailed as Mugen's picture but if someone really looked, they would be able to tell it was her.

"Why the fuck should I tell you?" Mugen's voice had bit more zip to it again, he didn't bother asking about what was on the papers, because he already knew. He had seen them posted when they stopped at the small dive when they made it out of the mountains. He tore them down and stuffed them in his pocket before Fuu saw them. There was no need for her to know, she didn't do anything wrong, and she didn't need to be worried over something that was beyond her control. She wasn't a criminal, and she didn't need to feel like one just because some guy was looking for them. He didn't even know who the hell this Ohno Butadon was, so why did this Kawara guy know?

"Well, from what you said earlier, ' _it coulda been them'_ , you are well aware that someone is fo-"

"No need to say it." Mugen snapped back at Kawara before he could finish.

Clearing his throat, Kawara glanced from Mugen, back to Fuu. _'I guess she doesn't know.'_ Rolling up the papers, he took the one from Fuu and secured them again in his uniform. "Since when?"

"Since when did it concern you?"

"-Because, we may have a common enemy, and if you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours."

"Heh.." Laughing from out his nose, Mugen smiled slightly, not because he was happy but because he was amused. "I think ya did enough scratching on my back last night..."

"100 lashes is nothing compared to a public execution or starvation."

Rolling his eyes, Mugen did tend to agree but damn, his entire back felt like it was torn apart. The cold stone felt nice against it at first, but it quickly became saturated in his blood and the uneven level and ridges started to dig in.

"I heard from.." Looking at Fuu, he actually didn't remember her name. Ishimatsu might have mentioned it but nothing was coming to mind.

Fuu didn't blame him for not knowing her name, she didn't know what his first name was either. She felt like it was kind of late in the game to ask and "Kawara" should be fine. But more importantly, what in the world were they talking about?

"My name is Fuu."

"-I heard from Fuu that you two were in Osaka, and from there you two eventually made your way to Fukui and then to here. So I'll ask you again, since when?"

"Jee...maybe I could remember but there's this pain on my back and arms. It's too damn distracting to remember."

"Once daylight fully breaks, we will release you from those cuffs. But first you need to answer my questions. This is the last time that I'll be asking you. Since when?"

"Fukui.."

"Great, thank you for your cooperation." Placing a hand back on Fuu's shoulder, Kawara watched as Mugen's brow knitted. "We'll be back after breakfast."

"Breakfast!" Clapping her hands together once, Fuu laced her fingers together. The saliva in her mouth was already beginning to pool. She knew Mugen was alright and that he was going to be released once it was officially "daylight" out so there was no need for her to hold back now. The knots in her stomach had all almost untied and her shoulders weren't as stiff. She could worry about him once he was out of there, but he was feeling good enough to be yelling and back talking- so it couldn't be that bad.

* * *

Sitting alone in her room again, Fuu stared at the empty dishes on the tray. On the way back with Kawara they ran into Ishimatsu and some of the other men. Ishimatsu raised a fuss that Kawara had gone against what they agreed to do, and that he had allowed her to wander with him. She wasn't exactly a prisoner but her movements were to be limited and watched. Kawara argued back that since he was with her that she was watched, but evidently, he wasn't supposed to be out and about either; especially without his katana.

 _'So much for that job huh?'_

Rubbing her stomach, she felt much better. But her body still felt cold and shaky, from the lack of sleep. It was still early enough that she could get a bit of sleep before the afternoon hit but she didn't want to miss out on Mugen getting released from his cell. Grabbing her hair, she twisted it up at the back of her head and secured it with her hair stick. Reaching over, she grabbed her bag and looked inside to see if Momo had returned and nestled herself inside, but other than her nik-naks, there was nothing. Looking back to the door, Fuu sighed. She wanted out of here, but she felt like she somehow lucked out when Ishimatsu didn't yell at her like he had with Kawara. Considering this was group was called the, Kawara Clan, Kawara seemed to depend a lot on Ishimatsu. _'Maybe because he's still so young?'_

 **Knock Knock**

"Fuu?" Sliding open the door, Osuzu stepped in. "Sousuke says you can come see your friend now."

Scrunching her face and raising a brow, there was another name that she didn't know. "Who's Sousuke?"

Laughing into her hand, gentle lines grew out the sides of Osuzu's eyes. "I guess he has changed quite a bit since you last saw him. Kawara, Sousuke was only a kid back then. He was the one that was trying to break me out of the brothel while we were there."

 _'The kid?..'_ Thinking back Fuu vaguely remembered the eager eyed boy that reached for Osuzu when he stormed the brothel with Jin. "That's Kawara?!"

"Hai, he's growing up into a fine young man hasn't he?"

Nodding her head, Fuu rose to her feet and smoothed out her kimono. "You said I can go see Mugen now?"

"I'll take you there, come."

Osuzu and Fuu hooked arms and walked close together as Osuzu pulled Fuu along. They exchanged small talk, like how the baby slept last night, if Fuu was comfortable or not, or if there was anything Fuu needed to let Osuzu know and she would make sure to get it. They reached the engawa where Fuu had met Kawara earlier that day and they continued on left until they reached a room far off in the corner where the engawa ended.

"Here you are." Unlooping Fuu's arm from hers, Osuzu gently patted the top of Fuu's hand. "When you're done here you can come visit the baby and I. It isn't very often that I get female company."

"Aren't you coming in too?"

"Oh, no. You have been summoned Fuu, keep your head held high and don't feint on anything."

Waving bye to Osuzu, Fuu looked at the doors that seemed taller than all the others (even though she knew they were the same size). _'Summoned..oh boy..'_ Slowly opening on side of the door, Fuu stepped in and all three heads turned to face her. Kawara, Ishimatsu, and Mugen.

Ishimatsu and Kawara sat in front of a heavily decorated wall. Their legs were crossed but their backs and posture were perfect. Then there was Mugen, who sat a few feet apart from them, so they were all facing each other. He was still shirtless but his entire abdomen was wrapped in white bandages, his legs were also crossed but somehow it didn't look as proper as the other two. His hair was slick from grease and he was definitely over due for a shave. She noticed it long ago but every time since she always thought the same thing, _why didn't he just shave it like normal?_

"Come in, Fuu." Kawara was the first one to welcome her. He waved in her direction, indicating he wanted her to come in further. Ishimatsu nodded at her as she sat down next to Mugen.

Mugen didn't say anything or even mumble at her. From the look on his face, he was undeniably pissed off, and for a good reason. He had been strung up all night and he "atoned" for his involvement in Kawara's fathers death. Even if Mugen wasn't the one that killed Sousuke's father, surely all of their involvement, Mugens, Jins and hers acted as a catalyst for it all.

Adjusting her feet comfortably under her rear, Fuu glanced at Mugen. She really wanted to talk to him, and to reach out to him but this wasn't the time or the place for that.

"Thank you for joining us Fuu, we have lots to discuss."

"N-No problem! Thank you for summoning me!" Her head snapped back in the direction of Kawara and Ishimatsu. Her entire body stiffened and grew tense. She didn't mean to be so tense or for her words to come out so loud, but being summoned was nerve wracking.

"Please, don't be so stiff, neither you or Mugen are in trouble." Smiling at Fuu, Kawara was handed a scroll from Ishimatsu. He then unrolled it in front of him. "But I must say, you two sure like to bring attention to yourselves. Your records are incredible. And I don't just mean Mugen's. As of lately, you've been quite busy Fuu. Destruction of Terazawa Inn, involvement in an opium operation, arsonry, and it seems you've taken down some wanted men as well. Quite surprising."

"Wait, how do you know all of that?" A cold sweat grew down Fuu's back. It continued to amaze her just how much power a person gets once they have money, and it sure seemed like Kawara had a lot of both. Personal records were hard to come by and somehow he had them.

"We're not law enforcement, and we're not quite criminals either. We have connections on both ends, and for a price, I can get my hands on almost anything. And let me tell you...you have gotten yourselves involved with some dangerous people."

Looking at Mugen, Fuu was waiting for his reaction but he didn't say anything. He just kept glaring over at Ishimatsu and Kawara. They probably discussed this all before she arrived, so what was she supposed to say? What was she supposed to do? It's not like she intended on involving herself in all the opium stuff, but they hadn't crossed paths with anything like that since Osaka. So why was it such a big deal now?

"But it just so happens, we have been trying to take down these dangerous people."

"You mean, that Ohno guy you mentioned before?"

"Ohno Butadon. He was the one that sent out the wanted posters for the both of you. Thanks to Mugen, we now know why."

"But I don't even know who he is."

"Yea, you do." Mugen finally spoke up, his words barely made it past his hand as he rubbed down his face. "Think about it, Butadon, Buta." Tightening his fists, he glanced over at Fuu. It had been so long since she mentioned him, not since the night where she broke down sobbing. How would she react now that he is still alive and actively looking for the both of them?

Swallowing the lump in her throat, her mind felt like it was spinning. Her hands felt cold and clammy, and the shaking she was experiencing earlier from lack of sleep was back but tenfold. Her stomach did a complete flop, she was going to be sick. No, correction, she was sick. "I...I think I should go now."

"Fuu, I think you should stay. Ohno is just a small catch in this whole thing. He is part of a much bigger operation that has stretched all the way from Fukui, to Osaka, Azuchi, Edo, and everywhere in-between. And it seems, you and Mugen will be key to bringing them out."

"But, how!? Just because of _him?!"_

Staring daggers at Kawara and Ishimatsu, Mugen was heavily implying that what they had discussed earlier not be brought up now. "Guess they've had their eye on us since we left Osaka, that's all. Ain't that right?"

Clearing his throat, Ishimatsu finally decided to speak up. "You've involved yourself in the largest opium operation, and from the story from..your friend here, you've destroyed and humiliated them. They're probably setting out to make an example out of you. But-"

"I won't let those bastards get you." Mugen practically shouted over Ishimatsu, but Fuu still couldn't bring herself to look up from the floor in front of her knees.

"But! If you two agree to work with us, Kawara and I promise to offer all of our resources and services to ensure your safety."

"What...do you have in mind, exactly?" Slowly looking up, Fuu knew this was probably her best option. There was still a lot of it that didn't make sense to her, there was more to this and eventually she would find out.

"Opium isn't cheap to make, it takes money to grow it, extract it, ship, sell, marketing, and of course it is safe to assume there are those within the shogunate and official roles that are also involved, which means hefty payouts. We've been scouting out gambling rings, brothels, back streets, slums, you name it, all over Japan trying to pinpoint where they might be fabricating their money. A few months ago we came across a rumor of a job scouts. They go out to distant, dying villages, with offers of jobs and high wages. From there they take the men, and as far as we know, no one ever returns."

 _'Just like Nee-san's husband..'_

"-We finally figured out where this job was, they are taking these men to Toi Gold Mine. They're not just fabricating their money, but they're actually excavating it. They're drugging their workers, getting them addicted, and then telling them they must work off their debt for the drugs. They're bringing in willing workers, and then trapping them their, it's a vicious cycle. So, if we can go there, they're sure to follow. We can end it all from where it starts, the money."

Nodding it made sense to her, but she was still curious. "-And how will he, they, or whoever, know where we are and that we're going there?"

All three men grew silent, as it was discussed before they had agreed not to tell her.

"Don't worry 'bout it. These guys might be jackasses, but they know what they're talking about." Plopping down his elbow on his bent knee, he rested his chin on his hand.

"So, you want us to go to Toi Gold Mine, with you? That's it?"

"To put it bluntly, yes. But, there was one other thing I was hoping you two could help us with."

"And what the hell is that?" Mugen was fighting to keep his eyes open, not to mention the urge to send the two of them to hell. No matter how pretty their words and promises were, they still hung him up like a piece of meat and slashed him.

"I want to find Jin. You two were with him when we crossed paths three years ago. He helped me more than I can express, I was just 12 years old and yet he took me seriously. If it weren't for him, I don't think we would have been able to save Osuzu and stop Nagatomi. We've also put our feelers out there for him, but so far nothing. If you two don't know where he is then I don't think there's any hope."

Both Fuu and Mugen froze. Neither of them had seen or heard of him since they split ways on that road three years ago. There were times that Fuu would hear of a glasses samurai, but everytime she went rushing to see, it was never him. Eventually, she just stopped rushing, there was no point in being disappointed again, and even if it was him there was no point. Would of he even liked to have seen her? Or would she just be bother again? It got to a point where a samurai clad in blue was just that, and nothing more.

Then there was Mugen. He wasn't exactly staying quiet during the time they were all apart, if there was any chance of running into him then he would have. The two of them both promised they wouldn't let someone else kill either one of them. If one of them were to die, it would be by the other's blade.

"Don't tell me...neither one of you know anything?" Kawara knit his brows, expecting their answer already.

At the same time, Fuu and Mugen shook their heads, resulting in Kawara slumping his shoulders.

"He didn't have any family? A dojo? A previous master, a lover?"

 _'A lover?'_ Perking up a bit Fuu recalled there was one woman, but what was her name? Jin had helped her out, he borrowed money from Mugen after he made a killing at beetle wrestling. Now what was her name? _'S...it started with a S...Sakura? No...Sara? No, she was an assassin.. umm..Shi..Shino?'_ Slamming her palm down on her lap, it stung immediately. "Shino! There was Shino!"

"Who the hell is Shino?" Looking at Fuu, Mugen thought she was crazy. When the hell did Jin ever get involved with a woman named Shino? He was basically always alone brooding in a corner, he wasn't much of a ladies man at all.

"She was that working girl that Jin helped escape. Remember when he borrowed that money from you because he wanted to buy a woman?"

"Where was this?" Grabbing a map that was rolled up, Kawara rolled it out in front of him. There were many circled cities and towns and just as many crossed out.

"Hamamatsu, I think?"

"You think, or you know?" Ishimatsu leaned over closer to Kawara, looking down at the map.

"I think I know?"

Glancing over at Ishimatsu, Hamamatsu was conveniently on the way to Toi Gold Mine. It was their best bet, it wouldn't take them out of the way and if they don't find him they could just continue on with their plan. "It's the best lead we've had. It's worth a shot." With a nod from Ishimatsu, Kawara rolled the map back up. "Well, you two, looks like we're going to Hamamatsu."

* * *

Staring at the doors, Fuu wasn't sure how long she had been standing there for but her feet were starting to hurt. Kawara dismissed them both, saying that everyone should rest and build up some energy before they head out. He wasn't sure if he wanted to leave tomorrow or in a few days, he had some other things to take care of first. Mugen walked her back to her room, and then left mumbling and limping. She didn't even bother going into her own room, she still felt sick, and she was way over tired- constantly shaking and feeling cold. Before she really thought about it, she was following Mugen to his room. Either he didn't care she was there or he was so beaten and tired mentally and physically he didn't notice her.

"Are you just going to stand there all day or are you coming in?"

Before he was even finished, she slid the door open with more force than she was intending, making the bamboo **clank** against bamboo. Looking at Mugen, he was laying on his stomach on his futon, with his arms crossed under his head. He was facing the other way so she wasn't able to see his face, but the groggy sound of his voice made her think he was just a few moments away from falling asleep. Stepping in, she slid the door closed behind her.

"Whaddya want?.."

Not exactly sure how to answer, she bit at her bottom lip again but quickly released it. It was starting become yet another bad habit of hers. "Just wanted to check in on you."

"Ya sure about that?"

"Mm" Nodding her head, she felt silly, he couldn't see her so why did she do that? Rather than walking around his futon, she just stepped over him and then sat down on beside him.

His one eye was barely open, looking at her. He eyed her a bit, realizing she looked almost as bad as he did. Sure her back wasn't torn to shreds but when the girl was this upset and worried there was no hiding it. At least not from him. "How 'bout you?"

"What?"

Groaning, he closed his eye. "Back there, when they mentioned that bastard, you looked like you were going to pass out." Nuzzling his face on his arms, he found a comfortable spot and let out a large yawn.

"I'm fine! Just tired." Rubbing her eyes, they were starting to water. She wasn't lying, she really was tired but she didn't exactly feel like spilling her guts out to Mugen. She did that once before and she didn't want to make a habit of it.

"Then sleep, stupid."

 _'Sleep? Here? Or..should I leave? Of course he'd want me to leave.'_ Looking at Mugen, his hardened expression was starting to relax. Somehow, now matter what happened to him, he didn't seem to let it get to him. She really wanted to see what kind of condition his back was in, but there would be another time for that. For now, he could sleep.

"Stop starin'...go to sleep or leave."

She just sat there for a moment, looking at him. The sickening feeling she had felt like it was beginning to ease, but she was still shaking. Mugen's eye opened again, and before he could say anything she tossed herself down beside him, using her own arm as a pillow. "I'll sleep, just stop." Shutting her eyes tightly, her body was still tense. She didn't expect to fall asleep instantly but she didn't think she would feel so troubled.

"Hey, stupid...you look like you're constipated, just relax."

Opening her eyes, Mugen was staring right at her with both eyes open. "Shut up, jerk." Closing her eyes, she couldn't keep looking at him, especially this close up. He might look beaten up, and he was far from clean but her mind kept thinking about what he did, or rather what he tried to do when he was drunk. He might have missed, and got part of her chin instead, but the reality was that he tried to kiss her. Drunk or not, that still affects a girl.

"If you're worried about what's goin' on...I meant what I said..I won't let 'em get you."

Nodding her head, his words were like medicine for her emotions. His words soothed her entire body, and her fatigue finally took over. She was at the point where if she wanted to open her eyes, she wouldn't be able too. She could feel the warmth radiating from Mugen, and her muscles slowly started to relax, melting her into the futon. Right now, reality was tough, and even though she didn't want to face it, she was willing to go back to her dream where the yellow flowers grew.

* * *

His eye lids felt like they were fifty pounds each and every time he closed them and tried to open them again they felt even heavier. It had been a long 24 hours, between the "strong man" competition, and the beating he got when he got here, he could sleep solid for a few days. But as tired as he was physically and mentally, his eyes wanted to keep looking at her as she drifted off to sleep.

This wasn't him. This "version" of himself was all a fabrication. He didn't stay awake to stare at some brat sleeping. He didn't let a girl just sleep next to him without him getting something in return. He definitely didn't let anyone get away with beating him, and yet, here he was. Laying, facing a sleeping girl that had no business being this close to a guy like him. Things weren't supposed to be this hard, he was only in it for some food, and that's it. It was never supposed to go this far, but yet he let it. He was constantly doing things to get her further away from everything that was happening. He was trying to grow out his facial hair so maybe he wouldn't look as close to the drawing of him on the wanted poster. Not that it would help at all, they already had eyes on the two of them.

From the time he saw that foot print that was left in the mud after that storm hit, he knew they were being followed. He wasn't sure who it was but the way they followed was different from whom ever followed him while he was in Fukui. In Fukui, they kept their distance, and never got too close. But whoever the hell this was, was ballsy. He allowed Fuu to sleep close to him because of it, at times they were so close that he could smell them. He could hear the trees shake as they moved to get comfortable. But, they never did anything, they only watched. He had tried to warn their follower to stay away, when he kicked the rock into the trees before they hitch hiked closer to Nagahama.

Normally, he would just find the mother fucker and end him, it wouldn't be that hard. But, he wanted to know who sent him and why. And unfortunately, he didn't have the patience to wait for answers. Slowly, once question was answered when he was followed to and from the brothel. They were more curious about him, and not Fuu. And they didn't take advantage of his drunken state. They weren't following to eliminate, they were just there to track. And thanks to this Kawara shrimp, he would be able to put an end to this hellish ordeal. He didn't have to keep up this charade. He could go back to his usual business.

Looking at Fuu, it was a wonder how she didn't look as tattered and beaten as she had the first time they travelled together. The fresh air and dirt sat differently with her this time. Shifting his head, he leaned more on his right arm, allowing him to move the left one. She was so close to him, the fine hairs of her face were standing on end, and slight bumps grew on her exposed skin. She was obviously cold. Reaching slightly, the tips of his fingers barely grazed a strand of hair that had fallen out of place. Stopping himself, he retracted his hand and put it back under his head.

This was all just some charade, and he wasn't supposed to be here like this, with her.

He knew the time was going to come eventually, when they would go separate paths again. Unlike last time, he wouldn't have to worry about her, because this time when he would leave, she wouldn't be alone.

* * *

 **Alright, so took me what, two weeks to update again? I appreciate all of the encouragement I've been getting, so thank you! This will be ending in just a few chapters and my updates might get back to being once a week because of it. I wanted to do a bit more in depth thoughts from both Fuu and Mugen in this one but I didn't quite get it to where I really wanted it to be. But I think it flows good enough? I literally rewrote Fuu's dream sequence 6 times over. A** **nd then I did have a flash back to the original encounter when Sousuke's father killed himself, but I cut it out! Then there was he conversation between Mugen, Ishimatsu and Sousuke, but I think I'll somehow slip that into a flashback in another chapter.**

 **I apologize for any grammatical or spelling errors!**

 **Butadon- This is actually a pork dish! But when I had originally wrote in "Buta" (which translates to pig), I wanted him to be this disgusting, fat, psychotic villain, but I ended up making him quite dashing and handsome. He's sick and psychotic but still. So I just settled on Butadon for his first name.**

 **Toi Gold Mine - This is an actual Gold Mine! And it is known for cave ins, and it's production/excavation of gold. I actually did research on this when I was working on one of my first chapters and I knew I needed this to be a setting somewhere in the story.**


	14. Chapter 13 - At the Count of 3

**I've been having major writers block for this chapter. Please forgive me! I am definitely behind schedule on this story. I meant to have this all done by the end of this month and I don't think that's going to happen anymore. I don't work on this when my husband is home and he got to have a break from work (which just happened to be during my birthday- Yay to being 23!), so there was a solid week where I didn't type one word for this.  
Also, I've been watching Kuroko No Basuke, and there's this one character, Shoichi Imayoshi, and whenever he speaks it would like..hit me, turned me into butter. I would be like "Oh god damn, that voice!". And it turns out, the voice actor is Kazuya Nakai! The same voice actor as Mugen (and Zoro from One Piece). **

**Last chapter I forgot all about honorifics! My bad! And I definitely dropped them in this one too...**

 **If there are any spelling errors or grammatical mistakes please tell me. Sometimes when I read things I read them the way that it's supposed to be and not the way it is actually typed.**

 **Chapter 13 - At the Count of 3**

* * *

Knitting his brows, he felt his muscles contract under her "gentle" touch. The soft fingers brought with them a heat that burned deep, making it difficult to keep himself composed. Clenching his jaw he felt like he was going to burst a vein in his forehead, the pressure behind it all was starting to build up. He shouldn't have let her do this, she didn't have a damn clue on what she was doing or how to do it. Overall, it fucking hurt.

"AH FUCK! WHADDYA TRYING TO DO!?" Raising up onto his elbows, Mugen tried looking over his shoulder at Fuu but the state of his back instantly reminded him why she was doing this in the first place. The pained burned through his tissues, his muscles instantly clenching tightly. It was more than just his back though, the cramping stretched around his sides and to his stomach.

"SHUT UP AND STAY STILL!" Rising up to one knee, she firmly placed one foot on Mugen's rear, pushing him back down on the floor. In one hand she held a small bowl of yarrow poultice, and her the tips of her fingers of the other hand she had a glob of the poultice ready for application.

It had been two days since they were brought to Kawara's, and Mugen's back needed to heal a bit more before they left for Hamamatsu. She was trying her best, she wasn't an expert at open wounds like this, but he had yelled so much at the girl was doing this before that she ran out crying. No one else was willing to apply it to him, so she stepped up. Or rather, she yelled at him long enough that he finally let her. Whether he was going to let her or not, she was going to do it anyway. It wasn't like he could exactly move freely or fight her off.

His back wasn't as bad she she had initially thought either. Once the first wrap of bandages were removed, his back was cleaned again which gave her a look at what kind of state he was really in. The whip marks were erratic, they stretching down from his shoulders and covered all the way down to the last nub of his spine. Bruised lines of the whip could be seen where the lashes had been done in moderation, but the spots where the lashes had overlapped burst open. The open wounds themselves weren't overly large or deep, but it left the skin on his back open and raw.

"GET-" Stepping down harder on Mugen, she could feel him slack a bit. "-DOWN!"

Laying back down flat, Mugen mumbled something under his breath, gaining an eye roll from Fuu. Pulling her foot from Mugen's rear, she sat back down beside him, and carefully applied the last of the poultice. She really was trying her best, but it was hard to apply something to someone's skin without adding much pressure. Every time she so much as pressed on his back, he would flinch. Parts of his back were already trying to develop scabs but his constant moving and fighting of medical attention was stretching and reopening any progress his body had made.

Wiping off the last bits of the poultice on Mugen's shorts, Fuu set the empty bowl down and let herself relax while examining her work. The pale yellow "mud", covered the entire centre of his back and then stretched out on the individual slash marks. She wondered what his back would look like once it was healed, what each line and bump of every scar would feel like under her fingers.

 _'How it would feel?'_ Zoning out on Mugen's back, she could feel her face grow warm. She had touched Mugen plenty of times before, but never for the purpose of just touching. When she really thought about it, her fingers could still feel the bumps of his hand as she stitched it together. How long ago was that? Two Weeks? A month? She couldn't place a timeline to their adventure. So much had happened that time just seemed to be speeding by.

"Oi...Oi!"

"What?!" Snapping out of her thought, she whipped her eyes back towards Mugen's face. He had readjusted his head on his arms to be looking at her. His face had been beaten and bruised from that competition he had entered, but whatever bruising was there had already disappeared for the most part.

"I'm starving, get me something to eat."

"Hah? Excuse me, I'm not your servant."

"Well you're not good for anything else." His eyes looked serious but he couldn't contain his lips from curling up slightly.

Placing her hands behind her back to hold herself up, Fuu shot one of her feet out at Mugen's face. "Don't be rude!"

"Ah fuck, hey!" Jerking his head up a bit, and propping himself up on one forearm, he caught her foot in his scarred hand. Even with his injuries he was able to hold her foot still and kept her from moving any more. "-The fuck you trying to do, huh?"

"I'm trying to teach a jerk a lesson." Trying to pull her foot from his hand, there was little give room. Trying to change it up she pushed her foot back which seemed to give her more power over Mugen but he quickly stopped her from pressing anymore.

"How are you gonna teach anyone a lesson when you're weak as shit?" Gripping her foot tighter, he extended his arm out, making her bend at the knee. Then he pulled her entire leg straight, which pulled her closer to him. "I mean are ya even trying?"

"Argh!" Being dragged on the floor, Fuu fell flat on her back. She was ashamed to admit that she was really putting all her strength into trying to get her foot away from him. Mugen was hurt, and yet he was easily overpowering her with one hand- but she couldn't let him know that. "Of course not! I'm holding back because you're hurt! Idiot!"

Looking at her struggle, he could really have some fun with this. Maybe twist her foot until she says uncle? He could get some food out of it maybe, bargain for some sake since they won't let him have any. That big guy, Ishimatsu, called him too much of a liability, and there was no saying how reckless he would get with booze. Or some dumb shit like that.

"Ya, well you don't see me making excuses."

Tired of trying to pull or push herself free, Fuu puffed up her cheeks and let out a large puff of air , blowing some hair off from her face. "Well maybe you should. You're not invincible Mugen."

 _'What the hell is she talkin' about?'_ Feeling her foot relax in his hand, it got heavy, she was no longer holding up her leg or trying to get away from him. "Hell, brat.. I know I'm not invincible. But I ain't just gonna lay back and take what the world throws at me."

Popping out her bottom lip and raising her eyebrows, that was a surprisingly philosophical thing to say, especially for Mugen. Sitting herself up, she had to bend at the knee of the leg that Mugen still had a grasp on. Because of how Mugen was propped on the floor, his head was just slightly lower than Fuu's but they were still close together.

"I think you throw a lot more into the world than what the world throws at you." It wasn't exceptionally funny but it made her smile. Perhaps it was because if the truth didn't hurt, it was funny.

"You got that right." Letting go of her foot, she brought it back in and crossed her legs together, loosening the fold of her kimono. She often did this around him, at first he would glance without a care, because hell, skin was skin. It didn't matter if it was from some underdeveloped brat or not, a peak wouldn't hurt. But then those glances started to get longer, and his eyes lingered to more than just her exposed shins. From there, he had a hard time looking at her at times. Trying to brush her off, or to keep preoccupied with something else- although there was plenty happening around them at all times, even if she didn't know.

"By the way-" Grabbing his hand that was holding her foot, she held it in both of her hands. "-How is your hand feeling? Can you feel anything yet?" Rubbing her thumbs over the bumps and ridges of her make shift stitches, she had to hand it to herself that she did a pretty spot on job. It seemed to be healing nicely, the scabs already falling off, leaving deep red lines were she had stitched it all together. He seemed to have good enough movement of it, but even if something hurt, it wasn't like he would come out and say it.

His back was starting to hurt, the bend along his waist was pinching some muscles. He wanted to lay back down, eat some food, and maybe nap. No, definitely nap. He had a whole hell of a lot of healing to do before they left for Hamamatsu, but...he couldn't look away. He couldn't look away from the damn skinny ass, loud mouthed brat. She seemed to be a real chatter box around that Kawara punk, but she still seemed off around him. Maybe it was for the best. After all, Hamamatsu was only a few days travel away.

"Can't feel a damn thing." Pulling his hand away from hers, he crossed his arms and laid his head on top. "Now, go get me some food or buzz off."

Her face went bright red but she didn't say anything. She seemed to be holding her tongue but surely enough, she got up and left, but damn, she was noisy. Her feet stomped down the hallway like rampant elephant but it wasn't enough to conceal the light steps that hesitated outside his doors.

"She's gone." Scratching his belly, he glared at the door, or rather, the figure that was on the other side. "Now get lost."

* * *

Stomping down the hallway, she was on her way to the kitchen to find some food for that glutton. Her shoes mercilessly banged against the wooden floors, surely disturbing anyone she passed. Despite everything his appetite was still ferocious. After the summon from Kawara and Ishimatsu she was only able to pick at the food- which Mugen gladly finished for her. Even the nights were dragging on, she couldn't get comfortable and her mind was in a constant buzz. The last decent sleep she had was when she dozed off with Mugen, which gained her a lecture from Osuzu when she saw her coming out from his room. It was improper, apparently. Which was surprising coming from Osuzu since the two of them had almost been physically used for profit. But apparently two unmarried people, consciously sleeping in the same room together was shameful. Since then there seemed to be more foot traffic by her room every night, most likely at Osuzu's request to ensure Fuu was really there.

Why was she listening to him anyway? He already ate more than his share of food, he could wait just like everyone else for supper to come around. She should just bring him back a raw potato or onion, or maybe even scraps. But even at the idea, she could hear Mugen's complaints and insults were already ringing through her ears.

 _'What the hell is this supposed to be?'_

 _'How the fuck am I supposed to eat this?'_

 _'Damn you're useless.'_

"Jerk, you'll eat whatever I bring you!"

"Jerk? You couldn't possibly be talking about me, could you?"

Looking over her shoulder mid-step, there was Kawara's smiling face right behind her. He seemed to be matching her every step, making their foot steps sound like one.

"Kawara-sama?" Slowly her pace, she turned on the ball of her foot so she was facing him. Slowly they seemed to continue walking but he seemed to accommodate her backwards trek. "-No, I was just, Um.. talking to myself out loud."

"Yes, it seemed so, you were mumbling to yourself for quite sometime actually?" Crossing his arms, he seemed to be treating this as a leisurely stroll. "I could hear you coming my way so I decided to take a break and join you on your little adventure. But you didn't seem to notice me so I thought I'd say something."

"Huh? You've been following me?!" Lacing her fingers together, she held her hands behind her back. Bouncing them off her rear with every step she took.

"You don't need to say it like that. I was just..walking with you, without you knowing it. There's a difference."

"Sounds a lot like stalking if you ask me." Sticking her tongue out at him, the both of them chuckled.

"So, where are you going anyway?"

"The kitchen. Mugen says he's hungry again." Shrugging slightly she bent her head to the side to almost meet her shoulder. "I have nothing better to do anyway."

"Mugen huh? You sure care for him, don't you?"

"Care for him?" Did she really care for him? Well, in a sense everyone cared for one another. And when you spend so much time with someone it is natural that you worry about their wellbeing- any decent person would. Wouldn't they?

"Woah, careful!"

Reaching out, Kawara looped part of his arm around her small waist. Bumping their fronts together and stopping her from stepping back anymore. Her face was incredibly close to his chest, if she moved her face up slightly, her nose would brush against the material of his yukata. His hold on her was very soft, and gentle, not like Mugen's at all. Mugen was always rough, and firm, even when he was trying to be gentle. It just wasn't in him to have a soft touch. Even the musk coming from Kawara was different from Mugen's. It was mild, it was sweet, not like the bold, sting that came from Mugen. And just as fast as he had her, Kawara let her go.

"Huh?"

Pointing behind her, Fuu looked and the hallway had ended and she was finally at the engawa that stretched out to the left and right. If she would have kept going she would have fallen off and onto the ground.

"How about I take you to the kitchen. I wouldn't mind a snack myself." Leaning down slightly, Kawara brought a hand up to his mouth and whispered. "-And I have a feeling that when Ishimatsu sees that I've left my office he'll lecture me again."

Following Kawara to the kitchen, she still wasn't sure what she should bring him. Or what she would even be allowed to use. Having Kawara with her, would make things easier, if she was "caught" no one would exactly get mad at her since she was accompanied by the head of the group. The kitchen was sunken into the ground compared to the rest of the estate. It was partially in the ground, requiring stairs to get in and out of the room, but it also left the room at a cooler temperature. It was rather large, with every utensil and cooking apparatus she could imagine. Multiple cooking pits and pots were set up so that large quantities could be cooked with ease. It was easily triple the size of any kitchen she had worked in before.

"You can use anything you find. The workers won't be in for at least another hour so you have until then."

"Are you sure? I, I don't even know where to start."

"Well.." Rubbing his chin, Kawara looked at Fuu from the side. "I like savoury foods."

"Savoury huh? Well..breakfast had some shiozake, so maybe if there's any left I can use that for something." Placing a finger on her chin, she looked up, as if she were trying to look into her mind to remember breakfast. She didn't eat a lot of it but the tray was full. There was shiozake, cream rice, fruit, and something else maybe? She couldn't quite remember, she only nibbled on some of the fruit before Mugen took the rest of it.

"I trust your judgement. I'm looking forward to your cooking, I'm sure it will be delicious."

"Huh? Am I making you food too?"

"Think of it as, payment for saving you from falling earlier."

"Ha, is that so?" Uncertainty washed over her. Making something for Mugen wasn't a big deal, the two of them had eaten some pretty questionable things over the coarse of their travels. But Kawara came from a household, he was use to full proper meals prepared by people that cook every day. The last time she cooked properly was in Osaka when ojii-san was feeling under the weather and they needed help. And what if it didn't taste good? What it if made him sick?!

 _'What if I give him food poisoning and he dies!?'_

Feeling defeated already, maybe she should have just pushed Kawara away earlier and let herself fall down.

"I remember this one time, right after my father died. Ishimatsu came back to the clan, and Osuzu was sick. We couldn't afford any cooks at the time so Ishimatsu tried to cook a meal for everyone. I never new a person could burn rice by boiling it. He left it over the fire for too long and all the moisture came out, burning it all. And there was so much salt in it that it could have killed a snail."

"Ishimatsu? Really?"

"Yes. But, I happily ate it anyway. And I'd do it again if it came down to it. So don't think about it so much." Giving her a light push, Fuu took a step further into the grand kitchen and continued on.

She hesitantly examined all the pots, utensils, looking into the baskets and barrels to see what was there to work with. At one cooking station there was still smouldering coals that she could easily get going again if she needed. On a table set to the side there were some closed dishes that she recognised from breakfast. Opening them up there were leftovers, untouched and unbitten pieces of shiozake.

 _'That could work.'_

Looking around some more, she saw something familiar, a wooden steamer. Almost all of the tea houses she worked at had something like it, maybe not as large but she already knew what was inside. Opening up the top, she peaked inside and sure enough, there was still some rice left over. Putting the lid back on, it was going be just like her days of monotony, but she was looking forward to it. Grabbing two tasukis from hooks on the wall, she tossed one at Kawara.

"Well, Kawara-san, looks like you're going to be my helper." Putting the tasuki behind her back and part of it in her mouth, she began the process of hooking her kimono sleeves in it and pushing them up her arms and out of the way.

"Huh? But I've never cooked anything in my life." Holding the white tasuki in his hands he looked at it. He hadn't worn one in such a long time, not since he did chores as a kid.

"No excuses! Put that on and get the wok on the coals. We need the oil hot!"

"Ah, yes 'Mam!" Like muscle memory, he was able to put on the tasuki with no problem. But now...which coals did she mean? Don't you need a fire to cook? And what is a wok? A pan? A pot? Slowly following in her original path when she was first examining everything, he looked things over, trying to make it look like he knew what he was doing.

"Here!" Quickly like it was another shift at work, Fuu was bustling around the kitchen. Pushing Kawara from behind, she guided him to the station where she wanted him. "Use this and get the coals going. You might have to stir them a bit to get some air to them." Handing him a large hand fan, she crowched down on her feet with her hands on her knees to watch him at work.

"Ah..like this?" Bending down, he gently started waving the fan, making a red glow under some of the coals. He would glance between her and coals, waiting for any direction or critiques.

"Not bad." Smiling, she gave him a thumbs up. "But, let's get this going a bit faster, you said we only have an hour, right?" Grabbing a chard, wooden utensil, it was long and the end of it had a flattened "hook". She used it to gently move some of the coals around and began to blow on them. Lowering herself more, she puffed up her cheeks. Firmly, she blew on the coals from a downwards angel so the air could get underneath.

* * *

Turning his gaze from the coals, he watched as her illuminous skin stretched as she took in more air. Her eyes seemed like they were shut but she was really just lower then he was. _'Do all girls have long lashes like that?'_ No, definitely not. Osuzu certainly didn't. But Fuu's were like curling petals of a flower, long and delicate. Not like the wearer at all. This girl, despite her appearance was tough and resilient. Her record, and what Mugen said were the polar opposite of this girl beside him. But just like Ishimatsu has said, this is what makes women so dangerous.

"Kawara! Why did you stop fanning? Go get the wok!" Smacking his upper arm with the back of her hand, it didn't hurt but it brought him back to his senses.

 _'When did I stop fanning?'_

"The wok, Kawara!"

"Huh? What? What's a wok?" Pressing his hands on his legs, he stood up straight again and looked around.

Laughing and rolling her eyes, Fuu stood up and patted him on the back. "It's a good thing you have people to cook for you."

He watched as she walked across from them, and grabbed a large circular pan that was deep and still has some oil inside of it. When she lifted it up, she grunted a bit and knitted her brows. _'She's small but she sure tries doesn't she?'_

"Here, let me!" Quickly getting in front of her, he took the large wok from out of her hands. The transition was a bit awkward because the handles weren't overly large, so he grabbed on while she was trying to pull her hands out from under his without dropping anything.

Clapping her hands together she brushed her fingers together, trying to get rid of the scratchy feeling of the worn rope handles. "Thank you, get that directly on the coals."

Nodding his head, he did just as she said and placed the wok directly on the smouldering coals. Pushing it down he twisted it a bit so it nestled nicely in place. "Now what?"

"Now-" Slamming down a dish of left over shiozake next to the steamer, Fuu pulled the lid off. "We stuff this in the rice and we'll fry it in the oil!" Using a wide mouth scoop, Fuu scooped out some rice onto her hand and started to mold it in her hands.

Watching her again intently, he stood beside her and watched her hands at work. It seemed like she was pressing all the rice together into a ball but then she would start flattening it between her palms. Once it was flattened, she used the small end of the spoon and carved out a hole which she stuffed some of the shiozake in and then placed some more rice on top. Making a some what spheroid shape.

"How's this look? Would you eat something like this?" Placing one hand on her hip she looked to him and held out the first product. "After it's fried I mean. Oil is flavour!"

Looking at the spheroid, stuffed, rice ball, he already wanted to eat it as it was now. Leaning in, he took a bite of it from her hand. Even though all he took was a small bite, he still managed to get some of the salted salmon in with the rice. "Mmmm, It's good!"

"Hey! You can't just do that!"

"Sure I can." Grabbing her wrist, he brought it close to his mouth and took the rest of it from her hand in one big bite. Finding himself rather funny, he tried to hold back his laughter but ended up shooting a few pieces of rice out of his mouth.

"Well come on. They're not going to make themselves are they?" Talking through a giggle, she pulled her wrist out of his hand and elbowed him lightly-making more rice fall from his mouth. Scooping up some more rice, she dumped it in his barely cupped hands. "The sooner you make them, the sooner you can eat."

Quickly chewing and swallowing the food in his mouth, it went down in one large lump."H-Hai!" Looking at the pile of rice in his hands, he tried to mimic the way that Fuu had done it. However, every time he would press the rice rightly together, it wasn't quite taking shape like Fuu's had. "I don't think they'll look quite as good as yours."

"It's fine, it's fine. We'll just give the ugly ones to Mugen. That guy will eat anything." Stuffing more shiozake into the rice in her hands she quickly finished her second one and went on to the third. "Make sure you put lots of salmon in it. I'm not putting any spices on it because they are already salted."

 _'So fast!'_ Nodding to himself he grabbed some shiozake and tried stuffing it into the rice. Clasping his hands over it again he closed it off and made a something that was similar to Fuu's. The second and third one didn't take as long to make for him but they varried in size. One was noticably smaller than the rest and one was far larger than Fuu's- probably because his hands were bigger so one scoop of rice in his hands didn't look quite right. He would have done more but in the time it took him to make the three, Fuu had already made 6.

"Okay! Let's get these babies fried!" Picking up the tray of "onigiri", the two of them went back to the wok that Kawara placed on the coals. Small bubbles could be seen along the sides of the wok where the oil was. "Now let's see if this will work." Using long chop sticks, Fuu carefully grabbed one rice sphere and held it in the oil. The oil sizzled as soon as the rice made contact. The moisture from the rice made it spit up at the both of them, making Fuu scrunch her face and lean backwards.

"Don't get burned now." Reaching forward, he stopped himself. Even if he took the sticks from her he wouldn't know what to do with them. He didn't know how long to hold it in the oil for, or if he needed to flip it, etc.

"Oh I'll be fine! A little spat of oil won't hurt." Finally releasing the rice, she let it fry freestyle while she placed another one in and held it there like she had the first, and she continued to do so until there wasn't any more room for any others. "There's far worse things out there than a little burn."

Crossing his arms, he pursed his lips a bit. "Well, I suppose so. But just because there's worse things doesn't mean you have to strain yourself."

"HERE! LOOK!" Pulling the first sphere from the oil, she set it back down on the tray with the other uncooked ones. It was perfectly golden on all sides, the sticky rice had made for a perfect shell. "What do you think? Not bad for kitchen scraps, right?"" Hands on her hips, she puffed up her chest a bit, proud of herself.

Leaning in closer, he wanted to get a better look, but her hand quickly pushed back on his chest.

"I don't think so! You already ate one, you're going to have to wait until they're all done!"

Allowing himself to be pushed back, he stood upright. He couldn't even say anything. All he could do was smile and watch her at work with the chopsticks and the food. She was only cooking and yet she had so much life to her, she was loud, she was pushy, she was bossy, and yet she was having fun, and so was he. It was hard to believe that she was the same girl who looked like she was going to pass out while the discussed the situation of their bounty. Being quiet and timid didn't suit her. Sneaking around when everyone else is asleep, with her shoes in hand, and this. This right here, seemed like her, and it felt right.

 _'You're more formidable than I thought..'_

Walking up the stairs, and out of the kitchen, they started making their way back to the main part of the living quarters. Looking down at the small tray she gave to him, he was more than happy to accept her homemade food, but he did notice a slight difference between his and Mugen's.

"Why do I only get 4?"

"Because, you ate one earlier!"

"Haaiii..." Slumping his shoulders, he nodded. It made sense. And his four seemed to be ones that Fuu sculpted. They were all the same size and shape, unlike the ones on Mugen's. Surely, four would be enough to fill his stomach but he wanted to enjoy more of her labour. "You'll be joining us though, tonight?"

"Huh? What's tonight again?"

"Our sending off party, it was Osuzu's idea, because tomorrow, we leave for Hamamatsu."

* * *

Roughly opening the door, the bamboo made another loud clank. Stepping into Mugen's room, she slid the door shut in a similar manner.

"What the hell took ya so long?" Eyeing her up and down, something seemed different about her mood. She may have slammed the door, but...there was just something different.

"Ah, Mugen! What are you doing?!"

"Hah?" Sitting with his legs crossed and a pinky in his ear, he figured he wasn't doing anything out of the ordinary. Maybe it was because his back as straight, not exactly like he had a choice in the matter. If he tried slumping he could feel the skin and scabs pull, breaking open again.

"You should be resting!" Rushing over, she set the tray down in front of him and sat on her knees. "What are you going to do when we leave tomorrow, huh? You need to rest while you can."

"Yea, yea-" With a fried rice ball in each hand already, Mugen took a mouthful, leaving only a small piece of his first one left. "Mm. Ain't bad."

"Pftt.." Crossing her arms, she looked away from him. "Of course it's good. I made it, and I couldn't let Kawara eat just anything so I put some real effort into this. So consider yourself lucky because I was just going to bring you a potato!"

Giving her a grunt as a response, he stuffed the last little bit into his mouth along with half of another. _'Kawara?'_ With a few quick chews and the swallow of a lump, he raised a brow at her. "What are you gettin' on about that shrimpy brat?"

"He's not shrimpy! He's almost as tall as you!" Letting herself sit a bit more slack, she leaned back on the palms of her hands and stretched her legs are far out as she could without kicking Mugen. "He came to the kitchen with me, and helped me make some food for your ungrateful butt."

 _'Almost as tall isn't as tall.'_ With more purpose behind his bites, he stuffed more in before he finished what he was working on. The savoury, salty taste was good, but it suddenly didn't taste as flavourful. Maybe the first bite was just right that now the rest was sub-par. Since they were facing each other, he "allowed" himself to look at her. But her attention seemed elsewhere. She was looking up at the ceiling, humming slightly. _'What the hell is she so happy about?'_ Was it because she spent time with that Kawara chump? Sure, maybe she and him hadn't been spending much time together the last two days other than when it was time for his treatment, but still. Why couldn't she go chatting with the broad with the baby?

"So, are you looking forward to the party?" Sitting up right, Fuu laced her fingers together and stretched them far above her head- popping something in her shoulders. "I bet there will be lost of yummy food."

"-Anything's better than this shit." Reaching for the last one, Fuu slapped his hand away from it.

"-Well fine then! Don't force yourself if it's THAT bad. Kawara liked it!"

Hitting her hand that was still hovering, he grabbed the last ball anyway. "I said that it was shit, not that I don't like it." Popping it all into his mouth it had a certain crunch to it that the other's didn't have. It was the perfect crisp shell to the salty salmon inside.

"I swear Mugen, you're the weirdest guy I've ever met."

"-And your the brattiest girl I've ever met."

Standing up, she brushed off her rear just in case she sat on some fallen rice. "Well, fine! If you're going to be like that I'll just leave."

* * *

Letting loose a large sigh, Fuu closed her own doors behind her. Everything about this place was exhausting, the rooms, the large hallways, the people. She was constantly moving, trying to keep herself distracted from the many questions she still had. The entire situation to here was still quite fuzzy, and there was holes in Kawara's explanation of their situation. But Mugen seemed to be going along with it all, which meant he was keeping things from her too. There was a constant knot in her stomach, but could she really complain at this point? She could leave, but what would she do on her own? Or rather, what could she do? Maybe continue travelling east? Try to get as far away from Osaka, and everyone as she could.

The knot only tightened.

Gently rubbing her stomach, it hurt. Like all of her subconscious feelings were finally ready to burst out of her.

"Fuu-chan?"

Snapping her head around to the sound of her door sliding open, Osuzu's kind eyes peaked in. "Oh, Osuzu?"

"I've been so busy with the baby lately, that I haven't been able to check in on you as much." Scooting in, Osuzu gracefully closed the door behind her. "How are you finding things here?"

"Good, great! Fine. Things are fine. But I guess we leave tomorrow for Hamamatsu. Are you coming too?"

"No, I'll be staying behind with the baby...but Ishimatsu, Sousuke, and some of the other men will be going along."

"Oh...I see..." Of course Osuzu wasn't coming. There was no reason for her to move herself and her baby. Even if no one was saying it directly, this was going to be a dangerous trip, which was why Kawara wants to find Jin.

"Fuu-chan." Tilting her head to the side slightly, Osuzu knitted her brows. "-You'll be safe with them around. You don't need to worry about anything."

Osuzu's words surprised Fuu. How did she know how she was feeling when Fuu wasn't exactly sure herself? Especially since they hadn't seen each other since Fuu got lectured about sleeping in Mugen's room. Maybe this was the power of a woman's intuition, or a mother's intuition. Women are always more in tune with emotions of other's, and that supposedly amplifies once you become a mother.

"I hope you don't mind, but I've heard of what you've been through, to get here. The things that happened when you left Osaka..." Scooting on her knees closer to Fuu, Osuzu held Fuu's hands, making Fuu turn around so they were facing each other. "My father, always told me bad things happen in three's. And that the world will balance out the bad with good. And Fuu-chan...your three things have already happened, so from now on, please only expect the good."

Nodding her head, Fuu bit her tongue secretly, to help herself hold back any tears. Exhausting, the bad, the good, all of it. "Thank you, Osuzu. You're really like..a sister. Thank you."

"Of course Fuu-chan.." Standing up, Osuzu pulled on Fuu's arms. "Let's go have a bath before the banquet starts, shall we?"

* * *

Fuu had to hand it to Osuzu, she really knew how to get a girl to feel better. It was more than just words of comfort or wisdom, but the bath had certainly helped her stomach. Reaching to the shelf where she had left her clothes, there was a different set left for her. Instead of her dusty pink kimono and bright yellow yukata, there was a deep blue set left.

"Huh? Osuzu! Where are my clothes?"

Already in her first under layer, Osuzu looked over to Fuu. "I'm having it cleaned again, so it's fresh when you leave tomorrow. Men don't exactly worry about hygiene like we do."

"Oh, Thanks but..." She was grateful for what was left for her, but truth be told- it wasn't her style. The kimono itself was dark blue, and it had a very small white pattern all over it. At first glance the white pattern looked like dots, but upon closer inspection they were four pointed stars. And then there was the obi, it was mostly white but there were different sized grey stripes running horizontally along it. Feeling the material, it wasn't much different than what her's was, but it was softer, it was knew. Most likely, hers had felt like this at some point.

"Oh..perhaps, does it not suit your taste?"

Bingo.

"No, not at all Osuzu, it's fine! Really!" Dropping her towel, Fuu didn't hesitate to start dressing herself. She couldn't allow herself to be rude or picky. Osuzu was being so kind, and she didn't want to hurt her feelings. The kimono wasn't actually that bad, it was just Fuu had never worn blue before- would it even look good on her? The material was smooth, and soft against her skin. But it had a certain crispness to it, just like new clothes tended to have. Even though it was rare that she got new clothes, it was a sensation that was easily recognizable.

Watching Fuu with saddened eyes, Osuzu couldn't help but want to do as much for the poor girl that she could. After their short time in the brothel, things turned out quite well for her (Osuzu). She and her father were kindly taken in by Sousuke, and any debts owed had been paid. Her father got to keep the shop, and continued to operate it to this day. She was even fortunate enough to find herself a loving, strong and devoted husband. Then to top it off, she had been blessed with a child. But what about Fuu? Fuu left with no where else to go except on a journey. A journey filled with incomprehensible risks and hardships- but at least at the time, she had Jin and Mugen. But what about after they left? Where did Fuu go? Who was she with? Where did she sleep? How many days in a row had she gone without food? How scared was she when those scars were freshly placed on her skin? How could someone that exudes such brightness, live in nothing but darkness?

"You look great Fuu-chan." Brushing her hands along the tops of Fuu's shoulders, Osuzu smoothed out the material and helped her fasten the obi- keeping Fuu's posture proper and stomach tight. "Now, how about you let me do your hair for you?"

Lightly shaking her head in refusal, Fuu ran her fingers through her hair. "Thanks Osuzu, but I think I want to go relax for a bit before the banquet starts. Maybe get a quick nap."

"Are you sure? It starts soon, I'm sure Kawara and some of the other's have already started drinking."

"I'm sure." Waving off Osuzu, Fuu was finally able to pass off a natural smile. "I'll be there in no time."

"I'll walk you to your room-" Tightly hooking arms wtih Fuu, Osuzu smiled. "-O.K?"

Shivers down her spine, it was like Osuzu had the same presence as her husband, Ishimatsu. "I'm going to my room! Not Mugen's!"

"Hai, Hai, which is why it won't hurt if I take you to your room myself, right?" Pulling Fuu along, Osuzu was stronger than she looked. Even though Fuu wasn't resisting her, she was forced to match Osuzu's pace. Through all the twists and turns of the estate that lead back to Fuu's room, Osuzu never let up. She kept the same tight grip on Fuu's arm, and the same smile on her face. Suddenly stopping, they were finally at Fuu's doors.

"Thank you, Osuzu." Even though this really was where she wanted to go, Fuu felt defeated in some way.

"No problem Fuu-chan." Letting go of Fuu's arms, Osuzu just stood there smiling at Fuu. Letting her arms relax, Osuzu placed her hands over one another.

 _'Is..is she going to watch me go in my room?'_

"O-Okay, I'll see you in a bit, Osuzu." Being sure to smile, and lightly bowing to Osuzu, she crept into the room. Leaning against the door after sliding it closed, Fuu stopped and listened. Osuzu stood there for awhile but then after about 20 seconds, she finally left. At the sounds of her footsteps getting further away, Fuu finally exhaled a breath she didn't realize she had been holding in. She knew there wasn't any time to nap, but there was something she left here that she wanted to get- her hair pin. Earlier she had placed it in her bag and it felt strange letting her hair down after getting use to having it up again. That and it felt weird not wearing her own clothes, and a different colour at that- so maybe having her hair up, and having the stick in would help make her feel more like her again.

Looking over to the window that she had left cracked for Momo, the bits of food she left there were still untouched.

 _'Jeez, Momo, you're probably stealing scraps again, aren't you?'_

Stepping over to her futon, and her drawstring bag that was still left partially opened along the edge, Fuu sat down on her knees. Lifting the opening of the bag up, Fuu reached in, expecting the cold feeling of the slick hair pin, but instead she poked a very familiar furry bundle.

"Momo-san! Where have you been?" Opening the bag up more, Fuu ducked down to look into the bag better. "Huh?...Momo...san?"

* * *

Holding up the small sake cup, Kawara looked at the rows of men, and Osuzu, that stretched out on either side of him and down the long dining room. There were plenty of other men that weren't in the room with them tonight but patrols and other jobs still had to be done.

"Tonight, we celebrate in hopes of a successful journey, in which some of us set out tomorrow. We send our prayers to the kamis that justice shall prevail, and that we all will return home safe and sound." Flashing a smile at those around him, Kawara held the cup slightly higher. "Kanpai!"

"KANPAI!" Everyone else holding up a cup shouted in response, and at once, they tipped the cups to their mouths and downed the first bits of sake of the night. The only one who didn't shout was only a few seats down from Kawara, and was placed next to Ishimatsu, was Mugen.

The damn brat had left before she wrapped up his back so he somehow managed to do it himself and he even got his shirt on. To be brutally honest, his back didn't hurt as bad as he let on. His muscles were a bit stiff because he wasn't moving around as much but when he finally got up and pushed through the first few steps he was fine. But the girl insisted on him having some medical attention, so god damn it, if she was going to act like that he was going to expect her to actually follow through. With his legs crossed like he usually did, he placed his elbow on one of his knees and sat his face on his hand, squishing his cheek. He could really use a drink but they still wouldn't let him, which was probably why he was forced to sit next to Ishimatsu.

The doors slid open and personal food trays were brought in one by one and placed in front of everyone until everyone had their own.

Glancing over the room, he still couldn't see her. It was strange, even though she hadn't been eating that much, usually if food was involved she was there like white on rice. But yet, she wasn't here. Leaning forward a bit, he glanced down to his right, past Ishimatsu and past his wife and brat to the empty seat that was left adjacent to Kawara.

It pissed him off, they hadn't even left for Hamamatsu yet and he was already getting tossed aside. Even if it was just two seats between them, it felt like much more. He knew the difference was always there, but damn...it never felt like this.

"Fuu-chan? She said she was going to her room for a quick nap first. Do you want me to go get her?" Turning to Kawara, Osuzu set down her chopsticks and patted her baby as it was held close to her by a sling.

"-That's fine, Osuzu, you stay here and eat. If she takes any longer I'll go get her-"

Standing up, Mugen's leg bumped his tray, making some of the dishes clank and shift as it settled back against the ground. He gathered the gaze of almost everyone around, and silenced most-including Osuzu and Kawara. "I'll go get her. I ate some shitty rice this afternoon so I ain't hungry anyways." Send a cold glare Kawara's way, Mugen walked behind the many dining bodies and out the door.

"Kawara, are you sure it's a good idea to let him go?"

Shrugging his shoulders, Kawara picked up a bowl of rice and some braised pork in his chop sticks. "I'll talk to him, when the time comes. But, there's no sense in letting the food get cold." Stuffing the pork in his mouth, he smiled at Osuzu and Ishimatsu before glancing at the two empty seats.

Scratching the back of his neck, he could feel some muscles tighten with the way he had his arm twisted. But if he didn't loosen up now, then how the hell was he going to do some ass kicking in Hamamatsu or whatever mine they were going to? Feeling heavy lidded, he was kind of looking forward to moving around again- all this laying around was making his head feel clouded.

The cold wooden floors scraped at his feet, along with his sword, his geta's were confiscated and he was left bare footed. There was worse things than this so for now, he would hold his tongue. And if that shrimpy brat was really going to do what he said, then he was going to be getting his stuff back tomorrow. Turning off the engawa, he grabbed a lantern that was hung above. He wasn't completely sure on where he was going. He wasn't granted the same freedom that Fuu had so he was unfamiliar with the place. He only had the sounds of her footsteps relative to his room to go from. Unlike following her footsteps in the grass, he had the seconds it took for her footsteps to almost disappear and the slight brush of her door opening and closing to guide him.

Down the hallway, he held the lantern up and out, taking glances at all of the different doors (all of which were identical). None of the rooms were illuminated, so maybe the brat really did fall asleep, but now, the question was, which door was the one? Taking a few more steps, he looked to his left at the doors that were right beside him. Slipping two fingers into the grooves, he hesitated. The sounds of her footsteps played over and over again. The way she always seemed to step her feet down harder when she was close, and how as she got further, he could hear her shuffle like all energy had left her.

 _'Not this one..'_

Removing his fingers from the groove, he took the extra few steps to the next door. Placing the same fingers in the grooves like he had the previous door. He pulled his arm slightly, making the same sliding brush sound he always heard.

"Yo, brat, wake the hell up." Holding the lantern in the room, he still couldn't see her. The soft light, lit up the floor and the area around his hand but that was it. Stepping in, he left the door open behind him. The floor brushed against the hardened skin of his feet as he shuffled further in. Leaving darkness behind him as he moved on, his foot stepped on something soft. Holding the lantern down, half of his foot was on the futon, and only a few inches from his toes was a huddled Fuu. At least he thought it was her, she was wearing a different kimono.

Her knees were up and her arms were wrapped around them, with her fingers digging into the opposite forearm. Her head was hung between, not letting him see her face.

"What the hell are you doin'? Your lover boy back there is waiting for ya."

Still no response or movement from her.

"Damn it, answer me when I'm talking to you." Lifting up his foot, he poked her with his toes.

Quickly she shifted herself away and turned her back to him, only to return to same pose as before.

"Ey, listen here. I ain't got time to listen to whatever bullshit you're deciding to be sad about now. If ya want to cry, I'll go get someone else." Looking down at her, that seemed like the "Mugen" thing to say but yet, he hadn't moved.

"Mugen-"

"Hm?"

"-Do you believe that bad things happen in 3's? I mean..that's what Osuzu told me today. But does it really?"

"-What the hell are you going on about?"

"Just because one bad thing happens, does that automatically mean two more will follow? And how do you know what counts as a bad thing? What if it's just life, or what if it's just..some sick, cruel, joke that fate is playing?"

Knitting his brows, he was expecting something about not wanting to go to Hamamatsu, or maybe she just didn't want to leave here. But how was he supposed to respond to all this? Why the hell were chicks do damn complicated? This is why he liked to pay for his girls, get in and out, no fuss no drama.

"-So what do you think? When someone dies...is it fate, or is it just that? Just death?"

"How the hell am I supposed to know? I never really thought about it. When you die, that's that."

"Hm.. I see." Turning herself, to look at him. Her eyes were glossy but yet, nothing streamed from them. "Did you know the lifespan of a flying squirrel is about 6 years?"

 _'Flying squirrel?...Fuck, the rat..'_

"Will you help me burry her? I, I don't think I can do it myself."

Rubbing his face he couldn't exactly say no. He'd known that stupid rat just as longer as he knew the girl. It was always with her, or at least it always use to be. The rat seemed to be attached to him too, crawling its way up his clothes and sitting on his head or shoulder. The large beady eyes always watching, like it knew. He didn't know what it knew, but it knew something that's for sure. The damn thing even lead him to her when she got herself lost in the forest after Fukui.

"Fine, let's go."

Walking back the way he came, Fuu followed close behind him. What the hell was he doing anyway? Finding a burial place for an animal, that's what he was doing. Bloody hell...this girl was really making something else out of him. If they had been almost anywhere else, he probably would have grilled the damn thing and ate it for a snack. Stopping when they got back to the engawa, Mugen looked out to the court yard where there happened to be a few different trees.

"How 'bout over there?"

"K."

 _'K she says. Maybe I should make the damn hole big enough to shove her in too.'_

Crouching down at the base of the closest tree, Mugen dug his fingers in. The soil was cold against his skin, and he could feel it build up under his nails. Making the hole deeper, he knew that if he didn't make it a decent depth some animal would come along and dig it up. And if the girl saw that she would lose it.

"There." Standing back up, he hit his hands against his shorts, brushing off some of the dirt.

"That'll do." Unfolding her hands from her chest, a nicely tied bow topped the once white handkerchief she used to wrap Momo in. Bending at the knees, she balanced herself on the balls of her feet. Gently and slowly reaching her hands into the hole, she set Momo down. Looking at the lump, she hesitantly removed her hands from underneath it, allowing the dirt to cradle her friend. Cupping her hands around the dirt that piled up around the hole, she slowly swept it over, filling the hole. Gently patting the top, the ground was now raised in a slight bump.

It was strange really, the first time she saw Momo, was on a dirt path around some trees just like this. Her mother had just passed away and she was on her own, to make her own choices, make her own way at life. And even though it was scary, she didn't let herself show it. She had cried so hard when she removed the cloth from her mother's lifeless face, that she just didn't have it in her anymore. Because if she broke down, there was no saying how long it would take for her to get back up again. With nothing but what she could carry on her back, she walked, she walked from her home, from her village and from her mother's grave. Then, as she sat down for a snack of sunflower seeds, beady black eyes watched her from the tree across the path. Offering her hand out, the squirrel didn't hesitate, it leapt from its place on the tree and to her. The first brush of the fur against her skin was like a luxury. It was soft, silky and warm. Fuu didn't mind the squirrel and the squirrel didn't mind her. They shared the small pile of seeds, and when she got up to leave, squirrel followed.

She followed for four long years.

"Thank you, Momo-san."

 _'Hm..well, that was anti-climatic.'_ Rubbing his nose, he inhaled a bit of dirt which tickled his nostrils, but he managed to hold back the sneeze.

A wet, bubbly sniffle broke the momentary silence. Standing up, Fuu wiped her nose off on the back of he hand. "It's pretty cold out here isn't it? We should go join the other's before they really start to worry." Turning around, her face was still dry and her eyes were no longer glossy. Reaching to Mugen, she wiped her hand off on his shirt.

"Fuck! That's gross you little bitch." Stepping back from her, he held out his shirt to take a look, and sure enough right where she wiped her hand was the wet spot left from her snot.

"I'm borrowing this kimono from Osuzu, I can't get it dirty." Stretching out her arms, she looked up to the star filled sky. "I guess that's 1, huh?"

"Hah?"

"Oh, nothing. I'm starving, so let's go get some food!" Grabbing the lantern from him, she quickly made her way back onto the engawa. Stopping when she couldn't hear him, she looked down at him in the darkness. "Aren't you coming?"

Shaking his head, he couldn't help but smirk. "My stomach hurts cause of some shitty rice that a shitty cook fed me today."

Puffing up her cheeks, she stuck her tongue out at him. "Fine, jerk, suit yourself."

Watching her leave, he rubbed his fingers together, feeling the gritty layer of fine soil that was left (at least on one of his hands he could feel it). Glancing back at the tree, a light was revealed, illuminating the lines of the tree from behind. Stepping out, Mugen couldn't help but glare, even though it was his default expression, he could feel himself pressing into it more. "There, I sent her back."

Stepping out fully from the tree, Kawara held his lantern higher. The light was still below his face, making shadows cast up. "You know the agreement, Mugen."

"-I know." Snapping back, his voice was louder than intended, but damn. He wasn't stupid, he didn't need to be reminded every single time she left. He was the damn one that came up with the entire thing.

"So why do you keep doing this? It's only going to make it harder when the time comes."

"Fuck! I said I know." Running his hands through his mop of tangled hair, he could feel some strands wrap around and pull out when he brought his hand back down. "-I fuckin' know."

Mugen once said, that the stars couldn't see a damn thing from way up there. That to them, everyone down here were nothing but grains of sand. So in the end, nothing really mattered. There was no chance in hell that someone, or something could ever identify one grain of sand from another. The choices a person makes, the good, the bad, it is all the same. Every last thing, was a damn grain of sand. It all blended together with no rhyme or reason. Nothing was special, nothing would ever stand out. So who the hell would care if one grain of sand was no longer there?

The answer?

No one, that's who.


	15. Chapter 14- The Essence of Realization

**The last two chapters were a bit of a bore, but the exciting stuff is happening as of now! We're nearing the end, maybe 3 chapters left! And I'm not receiving notifications for reviews anymore! I kept checking my email and there was nothing, so I was feeling really down about the last chapter. I thought I let you all down and that I should maybe rewrite it but then I checked on here and thank goodness..**

 **Thank you for everyone's support during all of this! My goal is to post TWO CHAPTERS this week.**

 **I thought of doing a Valentine's day special, but I decided to work on this chapter instead. There's lots of small segments in this chapter (as always), there were some small things I cut out but I really don't think the story or the chapter suffered because of it. If there are any spelling errors, I apologize.**

 **Chapter 14 - The Essence of Realization**

* * *

The bumps of the road served as her own personal rock a bye. Every time the wagon swayed, she swayed. Every bump, rock and turn, she felt it. The wooden wheels clicked every half rotation, she started keeping count in her head to help pass the time. The trip wasn't long but, she and Mugen weren't allowed to talk, they weren't allowed to move, they needed to be segregated from Kawara and the other's. She didn't quite get it, but Kawara said that essentially she and Mugen would be "prisoners" that they are bringing to Hamamatsu. Their personal records were all they would need as proof. To make it seem believable her wrists were tied tightly together, and Mugen's were tied behind his back. It was supposed to be all for looks, so although her wrists were tied, the rope didn't itch or dig into her skin. If she really wanted too, she could easily slip her hands out of the binds. But Mugen on the other hand, looked incredibly tense. Maybe to anyone else, he looked the way he usually did but she knew better.

They were sitting opposite of each other, and they were the only ones apart from two guards that were sitting at the end of the covered wagon with the gate down. Their legs were dangling over the edge, watching everything from the rear, and on their personelle seemed to be Mugen's sword. But she sat against the side of the wagon, there wasn't even any bench seats built in so they had to sit on the bottom. The canopy covering the wagon was a dusty yellow, it shielded them from the sun so for that she was thankful. But it also aggravated her. Because Mugen was looking everywhere but at her- which meant he was putting in a real effort to avoid her. Was it because she left for the banquet last night? Or was his stomach still hurting from the rice she made?

 _'Nah..._ ' She knew that look. His narrowed eyes, tense jaw, and the way he sucked in his cheeks every now and then. It was the same way he looked after a fight, when his adrenaline was still dropping. Saying he was on edge would be an understatement. But it wasn't like she was exactly feeling calm either.

When they came to get her early in the morning she hadn't fallen asleep yet. The banquet continued on late into the night, but Mugen never showed up. She talked the night away with Osuzu and Kawara- once he finally showed up. She even managed to eat an entire bowl of food for the first time in days. Her cheeks still hurt from her forced smile. Sure, there were times when he smile was genuine but she held it the entire time. It was like she was working the room at the tea house again- the smile, the laugh, the cheerfulness, it was tiresome. She only wanted to return their sincerity and kindness, so not wanting to let the passing of her furry companion bring her down, she spent her time in their company.

It made her feel a bit better. Osuzu's kind eyes and Kawara's smile brought her back up from whatever pit she seemed to be falling into. But she was determined that she would climb out on her own.

Straightening her back, it cracked in a few places. She really wanted to get out of the wagon and walk in the sun for a bit, feel the breeze in her hair. Closing her eyes, she could feel it. The breeze caressing her face, her hair blowing, getting touselled- but she didn't mind. The way her bag swayed with each step, hitting her as it bounced back. Looking up to the sky, the sun warmed her face and it flowed through her. And of course, in front of her was the colour red.

Sighing, Fuu opened her eyes. Knowing all too well that she would have to wait until this was all over before things could go back. Back to walking in the sun down some old dirt road that they didn't have any business following.

"Say, Mugen-" Finally breaking their silence, she could feel her heart pound like she had just taken a risk. Although he didn't verbally respond, his cold distant eyes finally closed in on her. It was like the first drink of water after a drought. "-Do you think we'll find Jin?"

Clicking his tongue, he had been wondering the exact same thing. "Couldn't tell ya. I doubt it."

"I mean, he's gotta be somewhere right? If not Hamamatsu, then somewhere else?"

"Unless the son of a bitch got himself killed...if he did that then I'll bring him back and kill him myself."

"You're still on about that? It's been three years, I thought you parted as friends but you still want to kill him?" Rolling her eyes, she wasn't surprised. This was just how Mugen was. It was like his way of showing affection towards a male in a completely plutonic way. She often wondered if any of their fights were actually sincere? Did they both try their hardest or did they just enjoy the banter? She had seen them fight many times, together and with other people and the way they moved against other's were completely different from when they faced each other one on one.

"Listen, if anyone kills four-eyes, it will be me. Friends or not."

Sighing again, she laced her fingers together and stretched out her arms as if she weren't bound at all. "-And here I was thinking maybe he would come with us when we're done. Wouldn't that be something?"

Raising his brows, he couldn't help but look at her slight smile and her eyes as she started daydreaming. The girl certainly lived in a world all her own, she didn't like to process what was really happening around her. One moment she's weak and feeble, and the next she acts like nothing happened. And then there's this, the exact thing that he's been trying to warn her about. Pay attention to your surroundings. If she wasn't so busy day dreaming all the time, she might be able to see what's really happening. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't- it was nothing more than a pipe dream. And dreams weren't meant for people like him.

"Listen here girl, I'm only here for the du-"

"You two back there, quiet! Kawara-dono's orders, remember?"

Looking at the two guards that were at the end of the wagon, Fuu waved them off and smiled back at Mugen. But he had already turned his attention away from her, and back at the canopy.

 _'He's still here for the dumplings?'_

Curling her knees up, she laid her head down and let the road soothe her once again. Last time, she couldn't bring herself to say it, she didn't want the journey to end- so she ended it herself. It would have been so easy to pull them along the same road, or to run after them. But she didn't. And now here she was again, with him.

* * *

 _"Perhaps... this is our fate."_

 _"-Maybe this is all a trial meant to test us."_

 _How long had she been standing here now? It was all the same, except..had the flowers grown taller? Or did she just feel small?_

 _Being here always have her the same feeling, emptiness, weightlessness- like she was a feather floating on the constant breeze. A light patter climbed up her back and onto her shoulder. Looking down, there was a new addition within the vast white._

 _Her heart began to ache, but at the same time, a warmth spread through her. She wasn't alone here anymore, even if it was a cruel thing for her mind to do, she was grateful. Curling her mouth into a smile, she was happy to see the black beady eyes that were gazing up at her._

 _'Momo-san.'_

 _With a twitch of its nose, Momo, scurried down the front of her body and down onto the red string that was still proudly leading into the field of sunflowers. Momo's weight didn't offset the string, nor did it "strum" as she scurried further along it. Although nimble, Momo wasn't able to avoid brushing against the long leafs that grew off the stems, making them sway._

 _'Wait, Momo-san!' Bringing her foot forwards, she stopped herself from setting it down. If she continued on, if she left her spot, she would be trapped with no end in sight. Trapped in a field of green and yellow, just like when she was younger, chasing after her father as he tried to leave discreetly._

 _She had ran so hard, but no matter how many steps she took, she couldn't catch up. The distance between them only grew, until she couldn't see him anymore. And all that was left was her in the field of flowers that smelled of him. Why was it that no matter how many breaths she took, she couldn't get any air? Her tears ran dry but yet she couldn't help herself from sobbing._

 _It was ironic. She had spent almost her entire youth hoping that the man that smelled of sunflowers would return. That somehow, following the scent would lead her to him. She had spent so long searching that she felt a connection to the flowers, but after the scent died when his life left his eyes, they didn't smell as fresh. The scent no longer called to her. Instead, she felt as if the flower mocked her. She had let the man, the idea of the sunflower, consume her every thought. She spent nights cursing him, cursing the memories left. Although, she understood now why he had done what he did to her and her mother. So all that was left, was nothing. The flower's no longer held any special memory, any regret, anger, and anxiety that they brought had been forgiven and forgotten. The scent that used to carry in the wind wasn't there. Even now, the flowers in front of her had no aroma, but there was something else. At the other end of this string._

 _Looking down to where the string was tied in a neat bow on her finger, her friend had come back. The beady eyes had come back, staring up at her with perfect balance on the small red string. Watching. Waiting._

 _Closing her free hand into a fist, she nodded at Momo, and took her first step into the field with it's unknown occupants._

* * *

"Fuu...Fuu."

 _'Hm? Not now...5 more minutes please..'_ Clenching her still closed eyes, she could already feel the weight of her eyelids and their refusal to open.

"Fuu, we're here. We need you to get up now."

 _'Here? Where's here?'_ Turning her shoulder away from where the voice was coming from, she could hear the voices fading in and out as her mind and body didn't want to be done resting yet.

A hand gently shook her shoulder, trying to get her to open her eyes.

 _'Ugh...'_ cracking an eye open, she looked at the canopy above, it was dark. She could hardly see anything. "It's still night.."

"That's why we need you and Mugen to get to work now."

"Work?" That was one word she definitely didn't want to hear right now. "Where are we anyway?" Fighting to bring her other eye open, she wanted to bring a hand up to run the moisture from her tired eyes but forgot that she was "bound".

"We're in Hamamatsu-"

"We're here already?!" Eyes shooting all the way open, the word was like caffeine to her. Turning her body, her knees bumped into Kawara, who was the one that happened to be trying to wake her up.

Eyes wide, he instinctivly bent away from her all while hushing her. He stayed like that, trying to calm his heart before leaning in again. Clearing his throat, he was grateful for the veil of darkness the night provided. Clearly he was the only one conscious of how close they were together. "You and Mugen have 1 day. Do you understand?" He spoke with barely a whisper.

Hunching in closer to him, she whispered back. "1 day for what?"

"To find Jin." He wished there as more time, but given the circumstances, he couldn't allow for more. There was a bounty on to their names, and there were eyes watching them. They all had to be discreet. They had to make every movement believable to not only the eyes in the shadows, but to Fuu as well. He had a role to play, just like Mugen. "We can't allow for anymore time than that. Tomorrow, when the sun sets, we leave for Toi. We will meet at a half way point."

"Wait, what?" Was her mind still asleep or was it just too much information thrown at her at once? _'Only 1 day to try to find Jin?'_

Sitting up straighter, Kawara rested his arm on his bent knee, directing himself at Mugen who's bounds had been cut at the center- leaving the rough ropes tightly around his wrists. "The street is narrow, and the buildings are tall, do you think you can manage it with your back?"

"Yes."

"Ok, now Fuu, please, pay no mind to what is about to happen. Oof!"

Without hesitation and without waiting for Kawara to finish his sentence, Mugen's geta collided with Kawara's jaw, bringing him down to the floor of the wagon.

"KYA! MUGEN!"

"BITCH, HURRY THE FUCK UP!" With one stride, Mugen was at the end of the wagon where the two guards from earlier stood. In one motion, Mugen reached up, grabbing onto the bent wooden frame above and swung from it. His feet went straight out, hitting the guards on the back of their heads and knocking them out cold. Releasing his grip at the end of his swing he landed on the ground.

Rushing up to her feet, she almost tripped on Kawara, who she assumed was knocked out like the others. But upon crossing over his body, her eyes met his in an almost slowed moment, his eyes gazed into hers, and his lips curled up into his comforting smile. _'What?'_

"God dammit, I said, HURRY THE FUCK UP!" With his sword reclaimed, he wrapped an arm around Fuu's wobbly legs as she stood at the end of the wagon. Pulling her forward, her body fell over his shoulders.

"AH! MUGEN! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!' Like a reflex, she bent at the knees which Mugen used to hook his arm around to keep her in place.

"Gettin' the hell out of here!" Like she weighed nothing at all, Mugen dashed away down the quiet street. Seeing an approaching stack of crates and large wall, Mugen knew his path.

"MUUUUGEN!" All she could do was watch everything zip by them as she tried to keep her head and hands up so she couldn't get hit by his moving legs.

"Shut the hell up or else yer gonna bit your tongue off!" With one large lunge, Mugen jumped onto the first crate and kept projecting the two of them higher and higher until there were no more crates.

Wide eyed she couldn't help but wonder what was coming, they were bit by bit getting higher and higher. Taking his advice she clenched her jaw. But she couldn't bring herself to close her eyes. No matter how much his shoulder dug into her stomach, she could feel his adrenaline running. And like it was contagious, hers was flowing as well. He pushed off the last crate with all of his might. His legs and feet continued to move as if he were running on air. Clenching herself over his body, she awaited for impact with the ground or whatever he as aiming for.

Stretching his hand out in front, his large hand and fingers easily gripped themselves over the far side of the wall. Using whatever momentum was next, he hurdled their bodies over the wall, and onto the other side. His geta's clomped against the packed dirt beneath him. Finally, he had stopped.

Her own breathing was rapid, and her heart was beating the fastest it had in a long time. She couldn't feel his shoulder heave with heavy breaths like hers did. Her legs were still tightly being held by Mugen's arms, and his shoulder wasn't as uncomfortable anymore.

"Fuck, you're heavy." Bumping his shoulder up and letting go of her legs, she fell flat on the ground. Reaching onto the shoulder she was on with the opposite hand, he spun his arm around in the air a bit. The tightened skin of his back held him back a bit, normally he would have been able to make that jump no problem. Worse things had happened to him, so he wasn't going to let a "bit" of wounded flesh keep him from doing what he wants.

"Mugen, you jerk!" Pushing herself up onto her knees, she spit out some dirt and hair that had made its way into her mouth due to the unexpected plummet to the ground. Rubbing her nose, it tingled and it felt warm. She managed to keep it from hitting the ground but her hands bounced up and knocked her in the face.

"Jerk? Who the hell do you think carried your fat ass just now?" Looping his arms through the strap attached to his sheath, he quickly adjusted his blade back to the proper place on his back. It didn't hurt like he thought it might, the strap along his shoulder was going to be a pain in the ass though.

"Ugh..I think my nose is bleeding." Rubbing her nose on the back of her hand, she looked, and sure enough there was a streak of blood.

Looking down at her, she already looked helpless. On her knees, wrists bound, and blood dripping from her nose. They had only been alone together for five minutes and she had already gotten herself hurt. Granted, it probably wouldn't have happened if he just set her down, but it still wasn't his damn fault she was so helpless.

Standing up, she made sure to stomp down on his toes real hard.

"ACK, FUCK!" Pulling his foot away, he wanted to boot her but she was already having a hard enough time. With her nose and chin high in the air, she was trying to keep the blood from getting on her clothes. Unfortunately, he left her bag with Kawara, otherwise there might have been a cloth she could use. "For fuck sakes..use this." Holding out the bottom hem of his haori he pressed it to her nose until she took it herself.

Holding his haori to her nose she felt bad, but this wouldn't be the first or last time that blood would smear it. "Thank you, Mugen."

"Yea, yea, just hurry the hell up.." Scratching his ear he looked around the dark street. They were still quite far from the busy parts of the city, at this point everyone in this area were already fast asleep. _'How the hell are we supposed to find him in 24 hours? It's a wild goose chase...'_ Bringing his nose up, he smelled the air. He could smell them, ,they were still watching, but most of all, the air was wet. They were in for some rain, and a lot at that.

"There, I think it's done." Pulling her nose from his haori, she lifted her chin. "How does it look?"

Bending down, he cranked his head to the side, getting a look up her nostrils. There was a smear of blood around each one, but that was to be expected. "Ya got a little-" Using his thumb, he placed it over her nose and cleared the blood in one swipe. "-there."

"Hey-" Rubbing her nose with her hand again, his touch left her tickle-ish. Her hands till tugged at one another because of her loosely tied bounds. Extending one arm straight, she pulled the other arm back, and tried squishing her thumb and pinky into the palm of her hand to make her hand as small as possible. The hand came free which then made it easy for her to remove her second hand.

Following suit, Mugen pulled his blade out and cut the ropes that hung from each wrist. He already looked suspicious enough, he couldn't go around with ropes still attached to him.

"Alright...let's get going."

Nodding at him, they dashed off, not knowing exactly where they were going. They followed the lights of nearby streets to help guide them to the late night crowds and singles who they hoped would know of a samurai with glasses.

* * *

 _Standing outside, she couldn't sleep. The night was cold, and in return so was she. Because of Mugen's winnings she was finally able to get a room to herself but it felt lonely. She hadn't been alone in so long, that now she couldn't stand it. So, she decided on watching the pouring rain pool on the ground instead. A door slid open, so curiousity got the best of her, and so she looked._

 _There was Jin with his eyes downcast, trying to leave. That wasn't like him, especially when neither of them needed to be on lookout._

 _'What is he doing?...'_ _Turning herself around, she quickly walked into his line of sight. "Where are you going?" Being as young and naive as she is, she knew where he was going. His eyes said it all. "Back to see that Kohana lady? Why? It's not like I don't understand why you'd feel sorry for her but-"_

 _"It isn't out of pity." His words were firm, despite his eyes, he couldn't even look at her._

 _"You aren't seriously telling me that you're in love with her, are you?" The rain beside them drummed in her ears, making it hard for her to concentrate. He still didn't answer her. "Jin, you aren't gonna run away with her, are you?"_

 _"If I don't come back..."_

 _No, that wasn't the rain drumming in her ears, it was her heart, her anxieties, it was overwhelming her. After Jin came back from borrowing money from Mugen, they pestered him until he finally told them who this mystery lady was. He kept it sweet and to the point about her, not that he knew a lot about her, but he knew enough. The poor woman's husband gambled away all of their money and debt piled up, so she had to play her role as a good wife and help pay it back. Stepping forward, Fuu clenched her hand and brought it to her chest- it hurt._

 _"...I want the two of you to continue your journey without me."_

 _"You can't be serious... You promised me that you'd help me look for the sunflower samurai, didn't you? If you leave, we're through as friends, you hear?!"_

 _She could tell from the unchanging look on his face that she was fighting a losing battle. He had made up his mind long before he tried to leave, which was probably why he tried to do it when he thought everyone was asleep. "You promised me! We've traveled together all this time!"_

 _His training, his sensei, all taught him that if you promise someone something, you must always follow through. Because your word is as important as your sword. If someone cannot trust your words, then there is no trust in the sword anymore. He was breaking his promise, his word, his sense of duty was starting to shatter. He couldn't bare to look the young girl in the eyes, because they might just be enough to talk him out of this. But, she had Mugen, and Shino, had no one._

 _"Forgive me..." Turning, he didn't look back. No footsteps followed him. Mugen, even though he was awake, hasn't said a thing._

 _"You jerk!"_

* * *

"So Mugen?"

"What?"

"What..are we doing here?"

The room was unbelievably loud, smelly, smoky and dimly lit. Voices roared as another round of bets was accepted. Some men yelled for more sake, other's placing blame for cheating. And even some bowing with their hands over their head, begging for another chance. But in this world, with these stakes, there weren't any other chances. Bodies Reached over one another, pushing, shoving, trying to get as close to the betting table as possible. She tried to make herself as small as possible by hunching close to Mugen who seemed to be one of the loudest of them all. She kept her feet under her bum and her knees pressed tightly. She didn't want to get pushed over by the drunk and overbearing crowd.

"Recon! HEY DON'T BE A TIGHT ASS YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Rising up onto his knees, his voice roared over most of the other men's which only got them going even more. Sitting back down, his eyes never left the table. "That gal's husband was a gambling man right? Maybe if we find him we can find the girl and maybe Jin."

"Ah, that's smart but-" Crossing her arms she was certain she was remembering this right. "-didn't Jin send her to a divorce temple?"

"Ya well maybe she's already out- FUCK YA! WOOHOO!"

"Huh, did you win?"

"You bet your ass I did!"

"What is this anyway?" Leaning in, she didn't have the guts to look earlier, from what she could see there wasn't anything one the table. No cards, dice, beetles, tiles- nothing. Leaning in a bit further, she looked to her right, at the end of the table. _'You have to be kidding me..'_ Lined up at the end were 5 tortoises', all about the same size but each one had a different colour tied around it's body to help tell them apart. "What is this?!"

"Turtle racing!"

"Turtle..racing?.. You mean tortoise, and Isn't that almost like a oxymoron?"

Turning to her, his face got scary serious. The dim lights made the shadows on his face stretch, like there was no end to his blackened features. "What the hell did you call me?"

Hitting her own forehead, she didn't have the time or patience for this. "You're an idiot, you know that?!" Standing up, her little frame managed to push back all of the opposing forces. "I'm getting out of here!"

"'Ey! Wait!" Looking back and forth between Fuu and the race that was about to start, he didn't know what to do. He had already placed his bet and he couldn't just walk out. "COME ON, LET'S GO LORENZO!" Rolling his "L" and "R", he stretched out the name as he continued to cheer.

Pushing her way out of the smoke filled room, the sunrise was already beginning to peak through the dark sky. Although, it was still far in the horizon, they had wasted more time walking around and in the gambling house than she would have preferred. In only a few hours it would be morning. They weren't left with much time from the start, and Kawara was depending on them. There was also a part of her that wanted to see Jin again.

When she happened to find Mugen, or rather when Mugen found her, her mind was always on high alert for Jin. Because the two of them went together-at least in her memories they did. Did he find a new master yet? Was he someone else's bodyguard by now? Or had he returned for Shino and ran off with her somewhere far from here? One thing that she was sure on was that he was definitely still alive. Somehow if Mugen managed to make it and survive after they parted ways then there was no way that the cautious, meticulous, Jin wasn't alive as well.

So what could she do now? Sit down and wait for Mugen to be done his "investigative" work?

 _'No, Kawara is counting on us."_

If Mugen wasn't taking this seriously then she would have to do the work for the both of them. Veering off to her left, she followed her gut. Whoever was out, she would have to ask about the divorce temple, and about Jin. Even if they didn't know him by name, maybe the knew of the glasses samurai. The streets were mostly quiet, shops were closed and their doors were boarded shut. It made sense, anyone that was awake at this point were either up to trouble, or just drunks. Or in some cases, both. But Fuu found that in most cases, the more drunk a person was, the more likely they were to talk.

* * *

Stepping onto the large bridge, Fuu laced her fingers behind her head. With her elbows up in the air, she couldn't help but let loose a large yawn. After a night of running around from dive to dive, and after getting the information from the brothel, there was still no word on Jin. It was a long shot to begin with and their last chance was this divorce temple across the lake. It would take a good part of the day just to get there so this was the last resort before they "met" up with Kawara once again. She had to admit it though, Hamamatsu had some beautiful views. Stopping on the large rounded bridge, Fuu looked out to the water that ran below.

" 'Ey, what are you doing? We ain't got much time."

"You've been out on the sea, right Mugen?" Grabbing onto the large wooden rail, it was much thicker than what her hands could wrap around. "You know how to sail?"

"You bet your ass I do." Stopping beside her, he crossed his arms and laid them on top of the railing. Sticking his butt and legs out, it was a nice stretch for his sore back. "I used to be a genuine pirate after all."

"Oh-" Blinking, she looked at him. "-Mugen the pirate, huh?" Eyeing him up, the name suited him perfectly. His permanently tanned skin, the scars, and even his jade earring, it all screamed _Pirate Mugen_ to her. "Mugen the Pirate. Jin the Samurai. and me, Fuu the..the"

"-The annoying."

"-The waitress!" Smacking his bicep with the back of her hand she puffed out her cheeks and cradled her chin in both hands as she sat her elbows up on the railing.

"You ain't no waitress, I'll tell ya that much." Turning around, he wanted to lean his back against the railing almost forgetting about his wounds. He hoped that no one would notice how he was babying his back. Watching the crowd that travelled in both directions crossing the bridge he started chewing on the side of his cheek again. He had started to on the way over in the wagon and now there were pieces of skin that were bugging him.

"Do you think Jin will be happy if we find him? I mean, we've all been through a lot, and it's been 3 years. He must be a bit curious about us, right?"

Stopping his jaw, his eyes followed back in the direction that they had just come from. "-And so what, are ya going to cry if we don't find him?"

"No!" Standing up straight she turned herself to him. "I mean, I'll be a bit disappointed but this was a long shot to start with." Rubbing her temples, she felt irritable already. Because of the dark clouds in the sky, her mind and body was having a hard time processing that it was day and not night anymore.

"Then I guess ya better get going to that temple." Smacking her shoulder a few times, Mugen walked past her, in the direction that they came.

"Huh?" Turning quickly she held her hands out and lifted her shoulders. "-And where do you think you're going?!"

Not turning around, he raised one hand high in the air and waved, and kept the other hand deep in his pocket. "Somethin' I gotta do. It's gonna rain soon so hurry it up."

"Something you gotta do? What? You're bailing on me! You lazy jerk!" Watching him walk further away, her sight of him became blurred with other bodies. "Typical.."

* * *

Stepping onto the dock, the air was covered in an ominous mist. The air, the ground, everything about the area was wet and grey. Perhaps, in the sunlight the area was beautiful, but she couldn't help but feel like she was getting sent off to the spirit world. The dark clouds seemed to be gathering more above, and the wind was picking up- making the boat that was left rock on the waves and hit against the dock. Walking to the end, the boat was finally visible to her. It was hardly big enough for two people, so maybe it was for the best that Mugen didn't come. It was obviously aged, the wood was discoloured and starting to warp but there didn't seem to be any leaks which is all that really mattered. On the inside of the boat, pointing up and out was what she assumed was a push pole. _'The temple must leave it here so women can get there...'_ Across the lake, Fuu could barely make out the sihlouette of landscape on the other side. She wasn't entirely sure if this was the right place, but if the woman's directions were right then this had to be the place.

Stepping into the old boat, she almost fell down because of the movement. It bobbed and rocked because of her added weight and because of the wind almost making her fall over.

"Whoa now." Bending down, she held herself steady by holding onto the boat. Taking in a deep breath through her nose, she exhaled out her mouth and removed the rope that held the boat to the dock. Grabbing the end post with both hands, she pushed off with all of her might, launching herself and the boat into the mist. It wasn't too thick that she couldn't see the other side but it still left an ominous feel in the air. Deciding to remain standing, she held the push pole in her hands and continued to push herself across the lake, fighting the wind and rocky waves.

 _'It's cold..'_

The wind bit at her through her clothes, and snapped even harder against her exposed skin. No matter what, it seemed wind was always more unforgiving around bodies of water. Pushing the stick one more time, Fuu was jostled forwards, landing her upper body over the edge of the boat and on the soggy ground. Curling her fingers to make her hand into a ball, she pulled up algae and moss in the process. "Well..land ho." Grunting, she crawled out of the boat and pulled it higher onto the ground to ensure it wouldn't wash away.

Taking a deep breath, she looked at the man (or rather woman), made trail that weaved through the trees and up a slight incline. Starting her climb, it wasn't nearly as steep as some of the terrain in the mountains, but it was far more slippery. The wet ground made her feet continually slip out from under her.

"Ack!" Holding her arms out straight and digging the front of her shoes/feet into the ground, she managed to keep herself from fully slipping down. Gritting her teeth and knitting her brows, she started climbing up the incline just like that. Hands out firm on the ground, and the tips of her shoes/toes digging into the ground to keep her from slipping any further.

"Ugh..finally.." Reaching the top, she was happy to finally be able to stand up again. Her arms and stomach were killing her- it wasn't very often that they got a workout like that. Looking down at her feet, her toes and shoes were caked in mud- but this wouldn't be the first or last time. Following the rest of the path, it lead her beside the incredibly large walls that surrounded the temple. Looking up, the mist covered the top, so she couldn't see the entire height, but it left the place feeling more like a fortress than a temple. Reaching what seemed to be the door, she was definitely expecting something much more grand- like two large doors on hinges that were double her height. But it wasn't, instead, it was maybe 7 ft tall, just tall and wide enough for one person to fit through. There was no knocker, or hoop, or handle for her to open the door. Pushing against it, it didn't budge either. Gently knocking against the door, she waited.

And waited.

And waited.

"Um..Hello?!" Bringing her fist back, she was about to bang the lights out of the door, until it finally creaked open. "He..llo?"

Opening the door just barely enough to get a look. It seemed to be an elderly woman, her face was creased and beginning to sag, giving her what seemed to be a permanent scowl. The old eyes looked Fuu up and down. "Are you here to seek refuge?"

"Huh? Me? No, I am looking for someone. A frie- family, I mean."

"Sorry my child, but no one leaves before their time is up, you'll have to wait for them to return to you, if they so choose."

"Please! Finding Shino is my last hope. Is she still here? Or has she already left?"

Looking her up and down again the woman seemed to stare around Fuu's eyes, but strangely enough, she didn't meet them. Opening the door wider, the old woman finally revealed herself. She was incredibly short, less than 5 feet tall, her face was round, as was her body. She wore a white garb around her head, covering all of her hair, and the sides of it came down over her shoulders. Her yukata was black, and tied around her body was a deep purple sash. "Shino, you say?.."

Looking down, Fuu didn't know what to say or think. She had almost expected Shino to have left already, or to be continuing her cleansing to be-rid of her marital status. But not this. Standing in the second row of many, her eyes stared at the oblong rock that was erect on a small mound on the ground.

"We often wait years for family to come, and more often then not, no one comes."

"How..when did she?"

Taking in a deep breath, the elderly woman hummed for a moment, trying to remember. "Died during child birth, about 8 months after she arrived to us."

 _'Child birth?...'_ Looking over her shoulder at the nun, her words left her mouth before her mind was able to read the nun's expression. "-And the child?"

"Also passed. Burried him with his mother."

"I see." Looking back to the grave marking, she didn't look hard enough to see, clearly beside Shino's name was 水子 , Mizuko, unborn child.

"He was such a small thing. I could fit him in both of my hands with room to spare." Holding her hands out to herself, the old nun looked down, envisioning the child. "-I used to think, that maybe if she would have made it to the ninth month that maybe, just maybe...they both could have survived."

Nodding her head, Fuu wished she had some kind of offering. Anything to lay on the grave would do. But unfortunately, she had nothing but the clothes on her back. "Huh? Wait you mean she went into labour early?"

"We only guessed based on the babies size and when she started having symptoms of pregnancy."

 _'Makes sense...'_ Looking at the grave one last time, Fuu turned to the woman and bowed. "Thank you for bringing me in here and for telling me Shino's story.."

"I'm happy to help family get some closure...there's actually something she left behind."

The hinges squeeked and the door firmly closed behind her. Fuu listened for the locks to be in place again before she leaned against the door. Holding tightly to her chest was the only thing Shino left behind, a letter. According to the nun, Shino had written it about a month before she went into labour and passed away. Part of her felt guilty for accepting it, especially since she wasn't a friend no was she family. But if no one had come in all this time, then who else would be able to play omage to Shino's memory? No...Fuu wouldn't be able to do that. But if somehow, sometime, somewhere, she were to run into Jin, she would give it to him.

After all, the letter was addressed to, _My Dearest_.

A pang pierced Fuu's heart. She felt for Shino, she felt for Jin. Did he already know of Shino's passing? Or was he still somewhere thinking about her? Thinking about her happiness and her freedom? Was he somewhere waiting for her? Of course we was. Jin wasn't the type to just declare his love for woman and then forget about her. She never even considered him to be the type to declare love in the first place. He was always so composed and stoic that it was nearly impossible to know what he was thinking about. But yet, he jumped out of that mold she had put him in, he risked his word as a man, as a samurai, to save the woman he loved.

Putting the letter neatly into her kimono, Fuu eventually made it back down to the boat. But her venture back down the slight hill wasn't without a few slips and trips. She even slid on her behind part way down- not that she could help it. Her toes were red and incredibly cold, and her clothing clung to her behind were it was slicked in muddy water. Looking over her shoulder at her rear, she could see the discoloured smear on the dusty pink material. _'Jeez, if Osuzu was here she'd scold me.'_

"Huh?..where's the pole?" Looking in the boat, she was sure he had placed the pole inside of it, leaving most of it poking up into the air. But it seemed it was no longer there. _'Maybe it fell into the water?!'_ Hitting her forehead with the palm of her hand, she wasn't surprised that something like this happened. It was just her type of luck.

"Excuse me-"

Turning herself around, Fuu was surprised to see the push pole perfectly in one piece. But she was even more surprised to see it in the hands of a woman. She appeared to be about Fuu's age, maybe a year or two older, but..what was she doing here? Her kimono was dark purple, without any extra addition of colour, it made her skin look even more iridescent and flawless. Her hair was pulled back tightly into a pony tail, but she left tuffs of her fringe hanging down in front of her face.

"-Were you looking for this?" Holding out the pole, the woman smiled.

"Ah, yes." Extending her hand out, she took the pole. The woman put her hands back down at her sides and continued to smile.

Blinking a few times, the woman widened her eyes and held a hand in front of her mouth. "I must seem out of place here, don't I?" Clearing her throat, she bowed. "Sorry. I was searching for the boat when I saw you come to shore. But I wasn't sure if you were staying so I thought I would wait to see if you would come back."

"Oh. I see! Well, thank you-"

"Yatsuha. My name is Yatsuha."

Standing at the end of the boat, Fuu tried to be mindful of her passenger. The boat wasn't overly large, if she were to sit down their knees would be knocking together. So she had no choice but to stand again like one the way across the first time. Pushing off the ground, they set off across the river. Fuu wasn't sure what to say, she didn't want to go prying into someone's life, especially someone that had to seek shelter in a temple. She must have been married off young- but from the timing of her release, that meant she must have entered the same time as Shino.

The silence was killing her. Should she say something? _'No, no, no. That would just make things..weird. But..this is already pretty weird.'_

"Were you at the temple visiting someone? Or did you decide running away wasn't the answer?" Yatsuha was the one to break the silence.

"Huh? I was there to find someone. You must have known her while you were there. Her name was Shino." Pushing the pole against the bottom of the lake again, the waves and wind didn't seem to fight against her as much this time. "But it seems I was too late."

"Shino, huh?" Placing an elbow on her knee, Yatsuha sat her chin down on her palm. "Call it woman's intuition but, maybe you should check yourself in there."

Arching a brow, Fuu was surprised at such an "accusation". "I'm not married, there's no need for me to be there."

"The temple isn't just for women who need out of their marriage. It's for women who need shelter, and protection."

 _'Protection?'_ Pushing the pole again, she put extra effort into it so she could bring the pole up and out of the water. "I don't need a place like that to protect me. I've already got-"

"A man?"

"Myself." Turning her upper body, Fuu kept her shoulders back and chest up. "I mean sure, that jerk helps. But he gets me into more trouble than anything."

"Jerk, huh? Are you in love with him?"

"Love?"

Why did Fuu suddenly feel so hot? It was like the sun was beaming down on her, melting her. Her palms grew sweaty, despite the cold, and her heart banged mercesly like a drum. _'Me, love Mugen? Why do people keep asking stuff like that. There's no way. No way, at all.'_

"Absolutely not! I would never love someone like him. Or anyone at that."

Laughing to herself, Yatsuha exhaled from her nose. Pressing more of her weight into her elbow she leaned in, looking at Fuu. "I like your style. Just take it from me, don't depend on anyone. You may think things are fine, but in the blink of an eye, things can change. People change."

"Yes, I know..." twisting her hands around the pole, Fuu knew better than anyone on how things could change. One moment you're waiting tables, and the next you're running from thugs, looking for estranged father and then boom- back to tables. "But sometimes, it's okay to be selfish, isn't it?" Clearing her throat, she needed to change the subject. "What were you doing in the temple, Yatsuha?"

 _'Oh crap..'_ A cold sweat ran down Fuu's back. That was exactly what she wanted to stay away from. It wasn't any of her business.

"Actually, I guess you could say, I was looking for someone- just like you."

The boat jerked the two of them when it collided with the end of the dock. Fuu was so distracted with the conversation that she didn't notice it through the mist. With the help of Yatsuha, Fuu grounded the boat, tying it to the dock and leaving it for the next wayward soul. Stepping off of the boat, Fuu offered her hand to Yatsuha and helped her onto the dock.

"Well, Yatsuha, I hope you found who you were looking for." Bowing down quickly, she stood back up straight.

"I did, thank you very much. And if I may say.." The cold and empty eyes of Yatsuha seemed to narrow, not in a menacing way. But in the way of assertion, she was projecting herself through her gaze. "There's a fine line between being selfish and greed. If this man is willing to lay down his life for you, what are you willing to lay down in return? At what price must your greed pay, Fuu?"

 _'Fuu? But, I didn't tell her my name.'_

"Yatsuh..a?" Looking around, Yatsuha was already gone. It was just like she said, in the blink of an eye, things can change. Even though Yatsuha was right in front of her, there was no trace of her left. "You're finally loosing it Fuu. You're completely bonkers. But.." Gripping to her chest, she ached. Even more so than when she hesitated outside the temple doors. This wasn't the same kind of ache she felt when she thought of Shino and Jin. For some reason her mind was in a frenzy about her behaviour with a certain vagrant. _'..No way..'_

* * *

Her feet shuffled underneath of her, she couldn't feel her toes anymore and the humiliation of her browned bottom no longer bothered her. She had forgotten all about it until she heard some child exclaiming to his mother that _'The lady pooed herself Mommy! Look!'_. She supposed that it really did look like that and there was no reason to be mad at the kid. Heck, back when she was a kid she probably did the same thing. And if Mugen were here he would definitely say something about it.

 _'AHA YOU LOOK LIKE YOU SHIT YOURSELF!'_

Gritting her teeth, just picturing him and his dumb face made her flustered. "HE'S A JERK AND THAT'S THAT!" Yelling up to the clouds, her voice seemed to echo, and in return the sky rumbled. The clouds were still grey and seemed to be growing darker as they collected together. _'Mugen did say it would rain..'_ Sighing she looked back ahead of herself. She didn't even know where to meet him, or where to go. They were supposed to meet Kawara at a "half way" point to the gold mine, but she didn't know the details of that either. They all seemed to be hiding something from her and she didn't like it one bit.

Shops around her were bringing in their displays and setting up their rain covers. The rumble of the sky rolled on, without much of a break. It was like nature was warning them all. Now if only life was like that. Life didn't come with any warnings, and if it did, people were too busy or ignorant to pay attention. _'Hm...sounds familiar?'_ Like a bell was ringing in her head, she couldn't quite figure it out. Maybe it was the memories of her mother telling her to be careful, to be mindful of others? She was an energetic child, not that she ever meant to get into trouble but she was curious so she would look for the answers. Unfortunately for her and her mother it mostly resulted in a scraped knee, going somewhere she wasn't supposed to be, or breaking something of someone's.

 _'Pay some damn attention to things around you!'_

 _'How fucking naive are you, huh?!'_

 _'You can't just go around trusting everyone! Not everyone has rainbows and sunshine shooting out of their asses like you!'_

 _'Worry about yourself for once!'_

Shoulders growing stiff, she stopped mid-step, and much to her dissatisfaction she knew why the idea was ringing like a bell. Mugen. That stupid jerk face, Mugen. He was always yelling at her one way or another, but her blood would instantly start to boil as soon as he raised his voice that it would go in one ear and out the other. Shaking her head rapidly from side to side, she was like a dog trying to shake off any water. But instead of water, she wanted to shake off these thoughts. _'There's absolutely, zero percent, without a doubt, no chance. Nuh uh, no way.'_

People rushed past her, trying to get home or to a store before the rain finally started falling. Mobile stands and wagons were on the move, hoping for better luck tomorrow or the next day. They weren't taking any chances, on getting them or their merchandise wet. But it was only water, and her toes were already pink from her venture at the lake, and hey, maybe the rain would clean her muddy kimono. She knew it would get dirty again but she didn't think it would be this soon. Osuzu just had it cleaned before she set out again, which she was thankful for. Wearing the other kimono just didn't feel right, it wasn't her (even though Osuzu packed it in her bag for her anyway). So she would only have to wear this one until they met up with Kawara again.

Soon the streets were cleared but voices could be heard from within the shops, and the sizzle of concessions cooking their food hummed beneath the rumbling thunder. It was a nice sound. The ferocious sizzle of cooking oil, slowly dying down as the food became crispy. She could smell it, like she was there in the kitchen again. The way the oil and steam stained the walls, discolouring them, and leaving questionable sweat marks along the ceiling. But she could no longer smell it. Her mind wasn't able to put together the pieces like it used to. Just like the smell of sunflowers, the smell of her days of waitressing was starting to fade.

Stepping off of the road, her shoes tapped against the wooden bridge. It was the same one from earlier that day, but this time busy bodies didn't cross to the other side. Placing her hand along the thick railing, she let her ran run along it as she walked further. Her hand and slender fingers filled the grains and grooves of the wood. It tickled the tips of her fingers but vibrated up through her arm. Puffing up her cheeks, she finally seemed to calm herself down. But she couldn't help but be disappointed that there weren't any more leads on Jin. The odds of Mugen actually finding anything were slim to none- and her bet was on the "none".

 _'Huh, speak of the devil.'_

Leaning against the railing, his wild hair only seemed more unruly in the wind. His usual cold stare was concentrating on the horizon, where the sky and water met. His sharp jawline seemed even more defined, and the extra hairs he had been growing were finally gone. His long, muscular arms were crossed against the railing and his body stretched far behind. The red haori, flapped like a flag, and he was the post. It was like it was waving to her, pulling her in closer. But on top of his sword that was strapped to his back, there was a new addition. Hanging from a string around his neck was a large woven hat which seemed to be catching some of the wind like a kite.

 **Pang.**

There it was again, that pain in her chest. Like something had a hold of her insides and was squeezing them tight, without restraint. Was it always this hard to breath?

"It's 'bout time you showed up."

"Uhn." Taking her last step towards him, he turned himself to her.

"Did you find that Shino broad?"

Eyes downcast, she shook her head no. Guessing by his question, she figured he had no leads on Jin either. Slowly looking back up at him, there was a new mark on his face, right on his left cheek. "What's that? Did you cut yourself shaving?"

"Heh, I guess you could say that." Running his hand along his cheek, he felt the long cut that was left. "-he just got lucky." Looking at her face, he arched his brow. Her nose was rosy pink, and she kept sniffling, but it wasn't just that. Her footsteps were heavier that usual, he could hear her coming before she even noticed him. Looking down at her feet, her toes were a darker shade of pink, and brown smears covered her feet. _'Must'ov had troubles at the lake..'_

"What are you mumbling about? Who's _he_?"

 _ **Crack. Bang.**_

The thunder cried out into the world, vibrating them both. Before it finished ringing through their ears, the light pitter patter of rain fell down upon them. However, it quickly built up in pressure, blurring the distance from their vision. Grabbing the string that was hanging from his neck, Mugen looped his head through it, pulling the hat from his back. With a grip on the top mound, his fingers easily held it tightly as he pushed it down onto Fuu's head, making her buckle under his pressure.

"Hey, what are you-"

"-Told you it was gonna rain, didn't I?"

Looking up from under the large veil left by the hat, she swallowed the ball in her throat. His hand still firmly in place on top of the hat on her head, his heat radiated through the woven straw and to the top of her head. His hair was already becoming drenched, but because of the texture, she could see some drops running down the length and falling to his shoulders. His lips weren't quite in a smile, but they weren't a smirk either. His eyes, were looking directly at her without any hesitation. She felt like it had been so long since he last looked at her. Not just a passing glance or a eye roll, but he was really looking at her.

His gaze was firm. His hand was secured. And his smile, warmed her.

 _'-Are you in love with him?'_

"..No way..." Her words barely escaped her lips, but to her ears, they screamed louder than the rain.


	16. Chapter 15 - Expired Warning

**So, my internet literally pooched out for 5 days. Nothing would connect, not even my phone or Netflix. So my hopes of uploading two chapters last week were obviously crushed. And I just realized how long my chapters really are, I was looking at a fanfic I was going to start reading and it had 3 chapters and only had a total of 5,000 words. One of my chapters is at least 9,000-10,000 + ! Is that too much!? This chapter alone is over 16,000 words!**

 **I also wanted to put it out there about Ishimatsu, in the anime they leave it under the pretence that he died against Mugen in a one-on-one duel. I had wanted to mention what happened when they were still at Kawara's estate but I completely forgot. So forgive me. There will probably be more than few spelling errors in this, or things that might not make sense. But with a chapter this long, sometimes things jumble together when you read/edit it and you miss things. Wanna fight 'bout it?**

 **And can I just like..swoon for a moment? Mugen with his hair wet? Yes, a thousand times yes!**

 **Audience and Content Warning- Mature and Graphic themes ahead. 18+**

 **Chapter 15 - Expired Warning**

* * *

"What do you mean you don't have any money?! What about the tortoise racing?!" Barely making it through her sentence, her eyes squinted and her nose scrunched up as she let loose four or five sneezes.

"I LOST IT ALL AFTER YOU LEFT!" Looking away from Fuu's puffed cheeks and frustrated eyes, he rubbed the back of his neck. He could have won, no, he knew he would have won. But he got too gung-ho with cheering that he accidentally fell down on the racing table. Least to say he took out a racer or two.

Almost like a growl, she gritted her teeth. Why didn't he say so sooner? They had been walking for hours, she wasn't sure exactly how many but she could only guess that it was at least 6 hours or more. The sky had been dark and clouded all day so it didn't give any clues to the time. The only thing she noticed was that it had grown increasingly darker as they got further and further from Hamamatsu. So all in all, night had fallen long ago, but Mugen didn't seem too keen on stopping. She avoided nagging for a break or food because her mind was still fuzzy. That was until they hit Shimada. The idea of food and sleep finally got the best of her, like a reward for walking in the rain for hours. But this was just cruel, just like when you're readying yourself for the last bite of food and someone takes it from you. If he would have said something from the start she wouldn't be as angry, but she had gotten her mind set on sleeping on a futon again. Their time at the Kawara estate had spoiled her, she was use to her soft futon and hot food.

"Geez, Mugen.." Crossing her arms, she leaned against one wall of the narrow alley that they were currently seeking "shelter" in. The large woven hat she was wearing now hung from around her neck. The walls of the alley were close together which kept the wind away from them, and the roof above hung over the wall which kept the rain away as well. "So, what are we going to do now?"

"Whaddya mean? What do we always do, stupid? Just gotta find somewhere out of the city."

"Eh?!" Normally she wouldn't have a problem with that, it wouldn't be the first time they took shelter in some shack. That was the norm for them, exept the two of them seemed to have decent luck with money this time around- that was until now. But, last time the two of them were rained on, it left them both naked and alone. Once was good enough for her, ecpecially now that she was vastly more aware of him. Just the thought of it made her face, and various other places burn. No, she couldn't let herself get back into that kind of situation, it was intense enough last time. Maybe it wouldn't be too late to pick up a shift somewhere and earn some quick cash? Or at least she might be able to gain favour with someone for a place to crash. It wouldn't be the first time after all, Jin and Mugen would send her to beg for a place to stay and once it was agreed on she would let it slip about her travelling companions.

"Hey-"

"Whad?"

He leaned in closer to her, almost making their faces level with one another. Her body grew stiff, and her mind went blank for a moment- forgetting to let go of her breathe. Widening her eyes, she felt her pupils contract so they could focus better on the closer specimen. His hair was still wet from the days travel in the rain, in fact most of him was soaked. He didn't bother stopping for another hat, the first one he had he had given to her back in Hamamatsu, and she wasn't even sure how or where he got it from. He braved the weather head on, without complaint while she walked covered, with only a few wet spots left by the rain. His hair clung to his ears, neck and parts of his face. It was strangely becoming of him.

"-Ya got some shit hanging from your nose." Tapping his own finger at one of his nostrils, he helped her pinpoint the snotty mess.

"Nose?" Blinking, her body released the tension and she turned herself from him. Sniffing in as hard as she could, it bubbled back in but upon release, it hung out her nostril again. She was completely stuffed. "Is thad bedder?"

"For fuck sakes..you're gross." Running his fingers through the drenched hair hanging over his forehead, he slicked it back, trying to keep it out of his eyes. Looking away from her, he looked up to the roofs edge that hung from both buildings, between them was a thin line that would have gave view of the sky above but in the darkness there was nothing to be seen. The odd drop of rain managed to fit through, falling down to them but at this point he didn't care. Everything from the smell in the air, and the way it felt, he knew this was only the beginning of what was to come. Today's journey was incredibly mild, and they should keep up the pace while it stays that way. "We should keep going, we can stop later."

"Whad?" Trying to sniff back in again, there was no movement, so her kimono sleeve would have to suffer. Bringing her sleeve up, she cleared herself of the mess- at least for now. "Bud we've been walking all day. Id's dhe middle of dhe nighd Mugend."

Grabbing her nose between two fingers, her pulled her face from side to side. He paid no mind to the wet sticky fallings from her nose that now stuck to his fingers. "Hah? Brats like you ain't got no say in this. Besides, if we stop now we will get caught in worse weather later."

Grabbing onto his wrist she use it to balance herself. His skin was as cold as hers, but his determination was still blazing. She currently didn't have it in her to argue back or try to pull free from him. If anything, the pressure on her nose was helping the build up. "Ughd, don'd you ever rund oud of energy?"

Letting go of her nose, he wiped his hand off on his wet haori. "I just wanna get all this shit over and done with. If you wanna stay here, then go for it. But lover boy ain't gonna be happy if you don't show."

Sneezing a few more times, her nostrils tingled but she still didn't have any give on the congestion. Wiping her nose with both sleeves, she hoped that would be enough to clear her face. "Lover boy?"

"Ya know, the shrimpy bastard."

"Kawara?" Taken back by the accusation, Fuu arched a brow. She could play this one of twos ways; 1. Pretend she was interested in Kawara for the sake of Mugen's reaction. 2. Tell the truth and hopes he drops the "Lover boy" reference. "Kawara is nice and all, but-"

There was really nothing wrong with Kawara, honestly, he was probably the ideal guy for most girls. He was self established, the head of a clan (vigilante or not, it was still impressive), money, he was kind, and honestly, he was quite the looker. His look was clean and classic, and he acted accordingly. Maybe at some point in her life, she would have found someone like him attractive, and she probably would have batted her eyelashes at him in hopes he would notice her. But she wasn't that Fuu. She wasn't the Fuu whose eyes would follow the good looking fellow walking down the street, nor was she the Fuu that was comparing herself to more "lady" like women any more. Sure, sometimes she felt like something was lacking, from herself and from her life but all in all she didn't have a lot to complain about. Having confidence in yourself can change a lot, especially the way you and other's view yourself. And sometimes, the guy you can't look away from, is the last guy you would ever find yourself attracted too.

Fidgeting with her fingers, she touched her thumbs and index fingers together, bringing the thumbs to the index fingers together and then back out like two pressed finger guns. Looking up from Mugen's red, wet toes, she looked up his body, until she settled on his face.

"-But he's not my type."

Her large doe eyes somehow glistened in the dark of the alley. Slowly unclenching his fists, his fingers gently brushed at his side. _'Ah..shit..'_ Unwillingly, he pulled his gaze away from her and turned himself slightly. With one hand on his hip he reached up and over his head with the other, and jostled the wet locks that were sticking to the back of his neck. Maybe the cold was starting to get to his senses too, because he was sure that for a moment his body had grew increasingly warm.

"Oh?" Stepping a bit closer, Fuu leaned in, looking up at Mugen from the side it was dark so she might be mistaken but- "Why are you smiling that? You weirdo..."

 _'Smiling?"_ Slapping his hand over his mouth, he used more force than he intended. _'Fuck..I was..'_ Clearing his throat he removed his hand and twacked her on the forehead. "You're mental. Now hurry the hell up or else I really will leave you here."

Rubbing her forehead, she doubted herself. _'Maybe it was my imagination...'_ Sighing, she grabbed the large rim of the woven hat and placed it back on her head. "Haaaiiii..."

* * *

The rain slapped on her skin, making every impact hurt from not just the size of the drops, but because of the acceleration of the wind. Keeping her head tilted down, she held onto her borrowed hat, even though it didn't offer much protection from the weather. She watched the feet travelling in front of her, the owner of which was taking on the blunt of the weather's aggression. His shorts were pulled back tight, whipping the sides of his legs with the continuous gust of wind. She dared not look up any further, she was sure if she did her hat would be taken away and most of all, she wasn't sure if she would be able to look back down. If she were distracted she would surely cause him more grief.

From Shimada they didn't take a break, not even when the rain turned to small hail for what seemed like forever. But in reality, it probably wasn't longer than a few minutes. With his guidance and her reading skills, they walked down a main road, following signs and following the flow of traffic. Even though there weren't many people daring to go out in weather like this, the odd cart would pass by them, splashing the two of them without hesitation or a second glance. If the weather would have been better they would have taken a ferry across Shimizu (Shizuouka), and directly to the Toi gold mine. But of course it was just their luck that the weather was so poor, and according to the local, the last ferry set out early that morning before the storm hit. So they were forced to continue walking.

She thought she was cold before but she was sadly mistaken, her toes, fingers, and nose felt like ice to the point she wasn't sure if her toes were wiggling when she tried. The hat she wore only covered her head and parts of her face, but because of the wind, her body was also struck with rain. Although Mugen was shielding her from most of the weather, a few wet bullets managed to get past him and to her. The wet parts of her kimono clung to her body, making it so she wasn't able to shake herself of the cold.

Looking out from the side of her eye, it had grown noticably lighter in the last few hours. Angular lines of the rain blocked most of the scenery around them, and the sky was filled with dark blue and grey hues instead of black. She had long lost track of time, but she new that they had been going non stop for almost an entire day now. The only break she got was when they were in Shimada but they couldn't keep going like this. The roads were covered in puddles and mud, making it hard to keep a good footing especially with the wind. Even if Mugen wouldn't say anything, she knew he was getting tired. He had to be.

Neither of them had anything to eat since they were in Kawara's wagon, and that was just a few pieces of sliced fruit and some dried fish. Perhaps Mugen was intending on going until they got to Kawara again? And where was that supposed to be anyway? She sure as heck didn't know. But Mugen seemed to have a pretty clear idea on what was happening and where they were needed. Kawara and Mugen hardly spoke while they were at the estate so why was it he was more in the loop than she? Why did she have this feeling that she was getting pushed out?

She was happy to be of some help, if they would let her help that is. Especially if it meant getting some very bad people behind bars. But the thought of everyone that was involved still worried her. The opium, Buta...and the names that she knew they were keeping a secret. Then there was that woman Yatsuha, who knew her name. But as she told herself, there was a reason why Mugen wasn't telling her. Maybe he wasn't intending to push her out of keep her out of the loop. Or maybe there just wasn't anything else to tell, maybe it could be that black and white. But if this was important then why didn't she know?!

All of it hurt her head. With all of this walking she had nothing better to do than to recirculate these thoughts over and over again in her mind. _'Yea..that's it Fuu, you're just over thinking things.'_ But what else was there to think about? She had nothing else other than what was happening right now. Thinking about the future, after all this was done was a mistake, it was dangerous. She had let her tongue slip when they were on their way to Hamamatsu and Mugen made it very clear that he was only in it for the dumplings. But was he really?

Would someone really go through all this trouble just for 300, no...235(?) dumplings? _'Well...'_ Looking at his muddy heels, Mugen was really something else. In all the years that she had been on this earth she really hasn't met anyone that comes close to this guy. _'He might just be crazy enough..no he's definitely crazy enough.'_ Trying to calculate in her head, she couldn't quite remember how much money she had left in her bag. It was still with Kawara but if she picked up some shifts somewhere after all this she could easily have his dumpling fee paid for. But then what?

Would they just split ways on the road again? Say a quick goodbye and turn their backs without a second glance like last time?

"Mugen."

Looking up a bit more, he was still walking strong, but despite her attempt at keeping the same pace she seemed to be getting left behind. The distance bothered her but for some reason she allowed herself to slow down, to barely a shuffle. Slowly, bit by bit, he got further and further away, and she was able to take in his full form. His strides were long and firm, his back and shoulders were hunched as he was trying to block the rain from hitting his face. His hair, his back, his everything, was completely soaked.

 _'Is this what it will be like after?...'_ Holding the hat firmly with one hand, she grabbed at her stomach which ached, making her feel sick. Her insides weren't in knots but just like her, they felt deflated. They were tired, they were sore, they ached.

Sniffing her runny rose, it did no good. She could feel the mucus running down to her lip. Rubbing it away on the back of her hand, she finally felt just how cold she really was. Compared to her face, her hand was like ice, and Mugen had been shielding her all this time. Taking a few deep breaths, she lifted her heavy feet and chased after him as fast as she could. Reaching forward, her hand caught his red haori as the wind was flapping it back. The water the material had absorbed squished between her fingers, and flowed down the curve of her hand and arm before falling to the ground.

"Mugen!" Squinting her eyes, a few drops of rain splashed in them. It hurt, her eyes started to water because of the sting that followed the impact.

Stopping in his tracks, he half turned. Letting the rain and wind hit his left side, and giving his face a break. "Hm? What?" Strands of hair stuck to his face, guiding small rivers of water down the ridges of his features. His normally radiant and bronzed skin seemed duller, and dark bags circled under his eyes. _'What the...is she crying? Fuck.'_

"What do you mean what? We need to stop!" Holding the hat firmly with one hand, she winced when the wind picked up for a moment, only to revert back to its original gusty speed.

"We ain't got time to stop, we can stop when we get there."

Rubbing the back of her hand against her nose again, she tried to sniffle everything back in. "I can barely see the other side of the road Mugen! The rain is too much! -And I need a break. You need a break!"

Clicking his tongue, Mugen started rotating his shoulders. He was definitely feeling tired, no sane person would be travelling out in weather like this. But hell, he had somewhere to be and he didn't want to prolong this process. He had thought of stopping a few times already, but for such a skinny ass brat, she was tough. But, she wasn't like him- not by a long shot. "If ya need a break then get on."

"On?"

Turning around, Mugen swung his sheath so it was only hanging over one shoulder instead of across his back. The crouching down he held his hands down at the lowest point of his back. "Get on."

 _'You've gotta be kidding me..'_ Maybe if the circumstances were different. Maybe if it wasn't raining so hard. Maybe if his feet weren't already paling in colour, and maybe, just maybe if his back really was feeling better, she would accept. No, actually, she wouldn't even hesistate, but it wasn't the time to be greedy. This was the time to be selfish.

Whipping off the hat, she smacked Mugen across the back of the head with it. And before he could even react, she placed both hands on his shoulder blades and pushed, knocking him down into the muddy road.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR!?" He slid on his stomach because of the slick mud, painting the entire front of himself brown. Quickly turning up on his knees, he tried to stand back up but his feet slipped a few times before he was able to get a grip.

"It's time for a break Mugen! You're tired! I'm tired!"

"I'm fine." Standing back up, the mud that covered most of his body was cold, but he had to admit, it helped block the wind a bit.

"No you're not! Would you normally get knocked down because of me? NO! The answer is NO, Mugen!" Placing her hands on his chest this time, she pushed again, and again.

"Hey!" Stepping back from the first push, he could feel his geta settle in the mud, but not enough to keep him grounded. "HEY CUT IT OUT!"

"NO!" With one last hefty push, Mugen finally lost his balance, and the battle.

Waving his arms out, it was instinct to try to grab hold of something to keep himself from falling. But the only thing solid enough to grab onto, was Fuu. Falling flat on his rear, there was no where on the road that wasn't a muddy puddle. The mud splattered out from under him, he could feel the slick texture from beneath him, but there was a different sensation that had his attention. Kneeling between his legs, still lightly beating against his chest was Fuu. Despite the grip he still had on her forearm, her little fists were still going at him, one after another. The impacts were barely harder than the rain drops on his cold skin but yet each hit lingered longer than the next.

Her head was hung, and her hair was unravelling from the hair stick. It had untwisted down to her shoulder, and the next movement would probably be the last before it slipped. Although not quite there, her hair was almost as soaked as his even though she had been wearing the hat until just now. Reaching out his hand once again, he placed it on the back of her head, adding in a bit of pressure so she would have to put her hands down to support herself. His hand and spread of fingers covered up the entire back of her head. He always knew she was small, petite in the right places but it had been awhile since he last paid attention. When was the last time he got a real good look at her? In the mountains? _'Ah..that's right...it was raining, just like this..and then she-'_

The images he had almost long forgotten about, but just like it happened yesterday he remembered the surprising figure she was hiding underneath. _'Shit.'_ Clearing his throat, he pursed his lips. "Enough already, I get it. Ya damn brat.."

Hands sinking into the mud her arms were shaking. She wanted to look up, but she just couldn't. She wanted to get up from between his knobby knees but, she couldn't. It was like if she stood up again, they would have to keep going. They would have to meet up with the people that for some reason kept Mugen away and isolated from her. They were hardly allowed to talk to one another, and around the Kawara clan, neither of them were the same it seemed. It was like he was always avoiding her, her trying to make her go away. On the bridge was the first time he really and truly looked at her since joining Sousuke and Ishimatsu.

"Can ya get off me?"

Quickly shaking her head "no", she felt her hair finally unravel, and her hair stick dropped into the mud close to her hands. Quickly grabbing it, she didn't want it to get too dirty, but her hands were already covered in mud and water so if anything she just acted as a catalyst.

"If ya want to make a move on me then wait till we get out of the rain."

"You-" Finally raising her head, and resting her rear on her heels she brought up one muddy had and shoved it onto his face. "-Idiot! Like I'd ever do that!" Quickly standing up, she was wished she still had coverage of the hat but that was long gone thanks to the wind. But maybe he wouldn't notice that her face was a certain shade of pink that wasn't caused by the cold.

"Pleh! Plew!" Sticking his tongue out, Mugen tried to wipe away the mud from his face and mouth but there wasn't much of him that wasn't covered in mud at this point. "You're a real pain in my ass!"

"I know."

At once, he held his arms up, and she held hers out. Grabbing onto each other's wrists, Fuu helped hoist up Mugen- even though he did most of the work.

"Ya know your gonna pay for that right?"

"Yes, I know." Slumping her shoulders, she knew very well that she would. All she could do was nod her head. The tickling of her nose made her squish in her face until she released three sneezes in a row, and thankfully there wasn't a mess hanging from her nose.

Her hands released his wrists, to which the rain and wind reclaimed the slightly warmed skin. Even though it was for a moment, her hands had covered one blue band that painted his skin. Although not significant, the release and reveal of them brought out the icy whiteness of her retracting hands. The girl was always pale, especially considering how often they were in the sun, but she never seemed to grow darker (unlike him). But now, she was so pale that she almost looks ghostly, like she was going to collapse any moment. But her eyes were still bright despite the dark bags under them.

"I guess-" Turning from her, he let go of one of her arms, and slowly loosened his grip on the other until it slid down to her hand. "-if you're feeling weak we can keep walking like this."

Blinking a few times, the chills momentarily subsided with the extra blood flow pumping from her rapid heart. "I-"

"Don't say anything stupid or else I'm leaving you behind." Resuming his path, he tugged her along. His feet, splashing in puddles and in turn, hers splashed behind. He couldn't look at her, and he wouldn't let himself either. Even though he knew he shouldn't, he was a greedy man, and he was fighting himself along with Kawara's words: _"So why do you keep doing this? It's only going to make it harder when the time comes."_

Her hand was limp in his but her arm was pulled straight. She still couldn't quite process what was happening. Mugen had seemed to be more open to physical contact during the early stages of their trip, but she was uncomfortable in most of those situations. But how would she handle it now? What would happen she slept in his arms again, even if it was just for warmth? But in what universe did Mugen initiate hand holding? Other than kind hand embraces from Osuzu, when was the last time her hands were enveloped like this? Even though his skin was icy and wet like hers, it somehow warmed her. Curling the ends of her fingers over his hand, she happily accepted the gesture.

* * *

Her hand was small, so incredibly small. It was the same little hand that seemed to try to fight so hard despite the lack of strength. The same hand that didn't hesitate to hit him, or try to put him in his place. The same hand that stitched his together and reached out to him so many times. But why? Why was she so damn trusting of him? Why the hell did she look at him like she did?

And why...why,

 _'Why the hell am I doing this?...'_

He had always been a greedy person, if he wanted something he took it without a second thought. Whether it was food, money, and even women. If they had his attention he sure as hell made sure he got it. Sure, over time he stopped certain criminal actions, but deep down he was still that person. He was still the kind of person that did what he wanted when he wanted. But yet, he was here. Holding some girls hand and guiding her through to rain.

And what for?

Gripping his hand tighter, her fingers had closed over his. Tiny, slender fingers. They were the complete opposite of his. His hands were scarred, rough, calloused and stained with more blood than she could ever imagine. Just like him. But hers, they were so tiny, that his pinky was larger than all of her fingers. They were soft, and every bump and groove was just as it should. They were clean, just like her.

And damn...he was going to make sure she stayed that way. Even if meant staying keeping her away, he just wanted to keep the hands in his clean and safe.

* * *

"Wah- look, Mugen!" Taking a few skips ahead of him, she made sure not to go too far. Her hand still firmly held his, and he, hers. Standing at the top of a smaller mountain, she could see lights illuminating in the night. It was a town, the first one they had come across in what seemed like forever. Just like the journey so far, the rain seemed to take forever to slow down. The ferocious winds and rain died down to a light sprinkle, turning the day to be slightly more enjoyable. Giving Mugen's hand a light squeeze, she didn't want to let it go, but she knew that she would probably have to as soon as they entered civilization.

"Yea..would you look at that." The lights of the town were the last thing on his mind. His eyes naturally followed her as she barely stayed within arms reach. Their hands were still connected as his arm stretched out in front of him and hers behind her. Her hair, just like his was wet from the days weather, it was starting to wave now that the rain had died down. Did it always do that when it was wet? Was it always that long? Her fingers seemed to tighten around him, like a light squeeze. But it gripped him harder than she could imagine. With one last internal strife, he straightened his fingers, and slipped his hand out from hers. "This is it. Let's go find that shrimpy bastard."

Slowly letting her hand fall back down to her side, she wasn't sure which reason made her feel so disappointed. "You mean this is it?" Looking off to the lights, she wasn't sure what she was expecting. But something about this place didn't quite scream "final destination". It was a sizable town, not quite a city yet, but it was large enough that it would take them awhile to find Kawara. Unless Mugen knew where he was- he seemed to know a lot.

"Welcome to Izu.." Adjusting the strap of his sheath, he bounced his shoulders a few times before stepping past Fuu and continuing down the road. How long had it been since he was here last? 6, 7, or 8 years? Back then, it wasn't this large, but then again, he wasn't here for site seeing. Looking out to Suruga Bay, it was an easy target for people like him and Mukuro. At the time, if they would have known about this gold mine it would have made for easy pickings, but hey, now he knew better.

"Izu." Still standing in place, Fuu's eyes darted from the lights to the darkened figure walking away from her. They were so close just a few moments ago, and now here he was again, walking away without turning back. _'Well..it's good practice for when I finally pay him..'_ Once he got his dumplings, there would be nothing keeping him to her.

"Hey-" Stopping with his hands in his pockets, he looked over at her. "You coming or what?"

"Hai!" Nodding, she picked up her pace and found herself at his side, walking towards the lights in the distance.

The road followed down the mountain, and it soon grew to levelled ground. As usual, trees and shrubs surrounded them, standing tall above them and blocking their view of the lights that they were walking towards.

"So, do you know where he is?"

"Nope."

"So, we have to walk around until we do find him?"

"Yup."

 _'Sounds exhausting!'_ How long had they been walking now? It's been well over 24 hours. That's twenty four hours without rest or food. Sure, they've gone longer without both but they were both soaking wet and smeared in mud. She wasn't as bad off as Mugen, his entire front was covered , including his shoulders, and it was her fault. She had pushed him earlier, twice as a matter of fact. And his clothes, and skin had suffered because of it. The hard rain washed some of it off but brown streaked and smeared all over him.

"Mugen-"

"Fuck. What?"

She didn't mean to say anything, her mouth was moving before her brain had time to register what she was really doing. What did she want to say? There was nothing she could think of, she just kind of said his name just for the sake of saying it. _'Crap, what do I say now?'"_ Even though he wasn't looking directly at her, she could feel his glare lingering.

"I swear you're a god damn pain in my -"

"Ack!" Attempting to step forward, the shoe that Mugen had fixed after leaving Fukui finally gave away. The nail he used to secure the strap pulled through, making Fuu trip. Falling forward, she didn't have time to brace herself, and she fell flat on her stomach and face into a big muddy puddle. Her impact caused mud to fly up at Mugen, not that it bothered him.

"-ass.."

Getting up to her knees, she tried to wipe the mud off of her face. "Ah, it's in my mouth, gross!"

He couldn't help but laugh while watching her. Her entire front side was covered in mud, it was nothing but brown. She really did look like a big pile of shit. "You, have got to have the worse damn luck I've ever seen. I fucking swear." Talking through his laughing fit, his sides started to hurt. It had been a while since he as able to laugh like this.

"Mugen! Shut up!" If it had been him, she would be doing the exact same thing as him- laughing her face off. But of course, it was just her luck. "I can't go into Izu looking like this!" Trying to wipe away anything she could, she only smeared it around, leaving streaks of visible flesh on her face.

Letting out one last laugh, he tried to hold the rest in. Taking off his sword from his back, he shed off his soaked haori and tossed it over her head. "-Use that to clean your face. I guess-"

"You guess?" Pulling the haori off her head, she scrubbed her face with it.

"I guess we'll find a place to get cleaned up first. Maybe get some rest before we find that shrimp."

Blinking, all she could do was look up at him. It was very considerate of him, or maybe his body was starting to power down now that they were finally here.

"Whaddya lookin' at?"

"Nothing! Nothing!" Standing up, she held the haori and Mugen's shoulder in one hand and reached to her foot with the other- taking off the twice broken shoe. Looking at it, the entire front had split, there was no life left in it. "Geez..seriously?" Puffing her cheeks, she tossed it away into the darkness. Her feet were already cold, walking bare footed wouldn't be a problem. But before she could place her foot down on the muddy road, her feet were swept up from under her. "MUGEN?"

His arm snaked around her shoulders, and his other arm hooked under her knees, making his body into a perfect cradle for her frame. The saturation of their clothing squished against each other, but Mugen's body was noticeably warmer than hers.

"Shut yer yap, will be faster this way."

"But, you'll get muddy."

"I said shut yer yap! For crying out loud." Hopping up his arms one time, he readjusted her and his sheath at the same time. She felt heavier than she usually did, her clothes were so soaked that it added more than a few pounds to her. His hand that curled around her arms, just happened to be brushing against a certain feminine mound. He never would have noticed if he hadn't seen, and apparently she didn't notice it either or else she would be screaming his ears off. The both of them were so damn cold that they couldn't feel much of anything anymore. Looking around into the trees, he knew there would be a place that they could crash at. It was just a matter of finding it. He could go aimlessly into the trees, or he could follow the road closer to Izu and find something on the boarder of the town limits. Taking his first steps, he figured he would just wing it and maybe luck would be on his side- because it sure as hell wasn't on hers. If memory served him right, there was a river (Kano River) running through here somewhere. Maybe there was a fishers shack or the left over's of a camp somewhere near it. One thing he remembered for sure was that Izu had a shit tonne of hot springs.

"Mugen, Mugen." Tapping his chest lightly, her hand was like a rabbits foot- quick and firm. "Look over there."

Following where she was pointing, there was a clear path leading from the road and into the trees. He didn't say anything, his legs were quick to make their way to the pathetic, uneven path. It was even muddier than any of the roads they had taken thus far, but he didn't let that bother him. His feet squished and squelched the mud under him, at times he thought his foot or geta were going to get stuck. Using more strength in his steps he easily pulled himself out of the mud and further up the path. He knew he was getting close, he could smell it. He could smell the hot, steamy, moisture in the air. Each step he took got him closer and closer, he could almost feel it. It had a warm fuzzy sensation compared to the chilling dampness of the last two days.

Having veered off the path, there he followed a trail of worn down and dying grass, like an animal trail. And there, in front of him was a sizeable hot spring. It wasn't the nicest one he had ever seen but for an unmanaged work of nature, it was like a god send. "Fuck. Yes!" Shifting his arms, he went to bring his elbows in as a physical "jackpot" display, but in doing so, and having forgot that he was carrying Fuu, he dropped her on her behind. "Oh Shit!"

"Geez Mugen! That hurt!" Lifting herself from the ground, she rubbed her sore and throbbing rear.

"Ya well, you can start by saying thank you." Grabbing her by the sides of her face, he directed her attention towards the hot spring. He could practically hear her jaw it the ground.

"DIBS! Me First!" Pushing against Mugen, Fuu lunged to the hot spring. Kicking off her remaining shoe, she was already trying to get her obi off, but her fingers were so cold she couldn't get it to work.

Rubbing his eyes, he came up behind her and tugged on her once yellow obi, loosening it instantly. This wasn't his first rodeo, if there was something he could do other than eat and fight, it was taking clothes off.

Letting out a slight yelp, she didn't mean to. She just wasn't expecting the uninvited help, but whatever he did seemed to work. Pulling her obi off, she tossed it into the water. Since they were here and they were going to sleep in wet clothes, she might as well wring them through some clean water and try to get as much mud off as she could. Holding the front of her kimono closed, she barely looked over her shoulder at him.

"Are you going-" The words in her mouth jumbled together. She was about to say something that was completely out of line, but she was at the point that he deserved the bath just as much as she- if not more. Clenching her jaw her furrowed her mouths and swallowed the words that were about to come out. "-to get out of here already? I want to have my bath! Hmph." Turning her head away from him, she focused on the hot spring before her.

"Yea yea whatever you say you brat." Stuffing his hands down his pockets, he walked away. If there was a trail leading to this place then maybe someone had something set up for visitors. Even fallen tree would do as long as the ground beneath it was dry. Hell, the two of them were already soaked and dirtied to the point that even if the ground was wet they would probably fall asleep instantly. He couldn't allow himself to lose track of time, he was no longer working on his own time. The moment they stepped foot in Hamamatsu, it was all according to Kawara's adjenda. So the sooner they were able to get some rest, the sooner they could get going again.

Waiting until Mugen disappeared into the darkness, Fuu set her hair pin on a large rock where she wouldn't lose sight of it and then she peeled off both wet layers of her kimono. Tossing in both layers, she followed them. The heat against her ice skin hurt at first- like it was in shock. But the more she submerged herself, the less it hurt, and the faster she grew accustomed to the heat. The filth from her skin and her soaking clothes seemed to disturb the water. Brown faded out from the clothing, making the still water murky. Sighing, all she wanted to do was relax, but her inner housekeeper was kicking in. Grabbing her dirty garments she started to work them into the water, rubbing material against material, rubbing them against rocks and wringing them out just to continue the process a few more times.

"There..that's better!" Wringing out the kimono layers and the obi one last time, they looked relatively clean considering what she had available to her. Stepping out of the bath a bit, she tossed them over a nearby tree branch. "Huh?" Looking over to the darkness, she crossed her arms over her chest and sank back in the water. "Mugen! I swear if that's you, I'll beat you to a pulp!"

Silence.

Squinting her eyes, she tried hard to focus. She was sure she heard something moving over there, but then again, she was sleep deprived. And it was incredibly dark here, the clouds still filled the sky even at night, which didn't let any moonlight shine down on them. Sinking in the water further, only her nose and above were in the chilling air. Blowing some bubbles with her mouth, her heart was pounding. What if it wasn't Mugen? Was it some kind of animal? Or maybe someone else was lurking out there?

 _'Better hurry up just in case.'_ Dipping herself completely under water, she quickly ran her fingers through her hair. Emerging from the water with a large inhale of air, she continued her rushed cleaning. Running her fingers all over her body, she took extra time on her feet to make sure there wasn't any mud left behind. From her feet, she ran her fingers up her legs up to her knees. She really had to hand it to that hair removal process. It worked well, even now her skin was still silky smooth and there wasn't any signs of new hair growth. Running her hands through her hair one last time, she squished the water out the ends, trying her best to dry it before stepping out. The thought of stepping out of the delightfully warm water just to put on wet clothing again put a damper on her mood, but beggars can't be choosers.

Inch by inch, every part of her was plucked by the cold air as she stood up out of the water, raising her smooth skin like goose flesh. Holding her arms to cover her chest, she stepped gingerly towards her clothes. Her instincts were to put on both layers, but maybe she could let one hang dry while they rested. Grabbing her outer layer, she slipped it back on. The wet material was even more uncomfortable now than what it had been all day.

"Oi, done already?"

Before she had a chance to answer, Mugen tossed something over her head. It was heavy, and had a musky scent to it.

"Hey!" Whipping it off her head, she nearly dropped it on the ground before taking a look. "What's this?" Playing with it in her hands, it was some sort of large pelt. The skin side was a bit stiff but it was manageable. The other side was a softer kind of furr, it was long enough she could run her fingers through it but not too long that she lost her fingers in it. It was mostly white but it had some sandy shades along with brown and grey marks spread throughout.

"Think som' kind of goat." Stretching out his arms, he released a large yawn that showed off the back of his throat. "There's a whole lot of them over there."

"There? Where's there?"

* * *

Curling her toes against the wood flooring, it didn't surprise her one bit that there was a place like this hidden. As bad of luck that she seemed to have, there was never any shortage of shacks or abandoned places for them to sleep. This one in particular seemed small, but that could be because of all the equipment that was set up. The entire inside walls were covered in hanging pelts, and there were shelves filled with all sorts of different utensils. She wasn't able to recognize any of them so she doubted that any were used for cooking. They were most likely tools used to gut and skin whatever animals the owner managed to trap. The thought of that alone was a bit eerie, but she was benefiting from it.

Having taken down a few of the pelts, she hung up the remaining layer of her kimono along with her obi. She couldn't bring herself to fully shed herself. Even if she was wet, the pelts she draped over herself were certainly helping with the chilling air. One was over her knees and the other hung from her head and down her back. It would have to do for warmth. There wasn't a pit for a fire, but they found some candles in a box which Mugen lit before he left for his bath. It wouldn't offer any heat but at least it lit up the shack.

The working flame flickered every now and then, as if there were a breeze inside. Fuu's shadow stretched along the one wall of pelts and tools. She was the only freestanding thing in the shack so all other shadows were covered by the very objects that they grew from.

"Maaan." Opening the door like he owned the place, Mugen shook his head, whipping his wet locks everywhere like a dog. "-That was the best." Closing the door behind him, he did just as Fuu had and pulled down some pelts and hung his haori and shirt from the lines. Plopping himself down by the door, he stretched his legs out in front of him but didn't lean back against anything. His calves surrounded the candles, and his feet were almost in line with hers.

Talking through her yawn, tears built in her eyes from the fatigue. "How's your back feeling?"

"Feels just fine." Catching a yawn from Fuu he stretched his mouth wide open again. "How's your ankle or whatever?" Plopping himself more on his side, he swung his one leg over so it was with the other. Bending one knee, it stuck up in the the air and he plopped his chin on one hand. And of course, since there wasn't anything else "interesting" to look at, he would have to settle on her. It was as if he didn't get a good enough look earlier. He wasn't ashamed by it at all, but if she found out, he wouldn't hear the end of it. Even though it was an accident, he thought he heard her come out of the bath so he was going to show her the pelt and take her here to the shack but...he froze. He froze in place and stared at her. The view only reminded him of the night that she was pinned under him. She was right there, in his grasp, exposed to him but he backed out. The only difference this time was the space between them. He was standing in the trees like some damn dirty pervert, he could have walked out, he could have said something but his body wouldn't move.

He looked her body up and down more times than he could count. The bruises that once plagued her legs were finally gone, leaving the skin as milky and clear as the rest of her. If he were to touch her legs, how easily would she bruise? What kind of face would he make as he reached his hands higher and higher, up her thigh, to the heat between them. But no, he wouldn't give in just like that. He would run his hands further yet, up her tight stomach, and to the perky mounds above. Would they feel as good as they looked? Was she sensitive there? What got her gears turning? _'Fuck..Mugen..what the hell are ya thinking? She ain't yours to be-'_

Turning his face into his hand, he swallowed the ball of saliva that had built up in his mouth. He was starting to lure himself into dangerous territory again.

Raising her leg and foot over the candles and towards him, she flexed her foot and rotated it. "It's fine! I could run a marathon if I wanted."

"Fuck, like you could run. Your clumsy ass would fall over at the starting line." Snorting out a light laugh, he could easily picture it. The broad was like a newborn fawn, tripping over anything and everything, including herself.

"Hey, don't be rude!" Reaching her arm out to the side, she placed a hard hit on his shin- hitting the bone. The impact probably hurt her hand more than it hurt him but hopefully it got her frustration across.

"Cut it out, ya little bitch." Shaking the leg that she hit a few times, he laid down on his side, pulling one of the pelts over himself and crossing his arms underneath. Placing his hands under his arm pits, his fingers started to become warm again.

"Are you going to sleep?" Leaning over the candles she placed her hands down flat and kept her knees on the other side, keeping the candles under her belly.

"Ya. So shutup." Smacking his mouth a few times he shut his eyes. Maybe sleeping would rid him of his dangerous thoughts. He wasn't exactly the kind to back down, especially from something he wanted. _'Wait..wanted? Fuck..I don't want the brat. Nah, she's just convenient..'_ But his mind kept flashing between her in the bath and under him in the mountains.

* * *

 _Fidgeting his free fingers of his right hand, he wanted to touch her. He wanted to know what kind of face she would make, what kind of sounds would escape her, and how she tasted. Lowering himself down, he was no longer held up by his knees, but his legs extended down past hers, pressing every inch of him on her. Her chest pressed against his, her one leg was trapped between his and he pressed against her thigh. His right hand fell into a fist by her head as he leaned down on his forearm. "I wasn't brought up well, If I see something interesting, something I want, I get greedy and I will take it." His words were like a growl next to her ear, his head pressed down on the floor boards and the whiskers of his chin scratched at her shoulder. "But-" whipping himself back up, he tossed the edge of the sheet back onto her, covering up her luscious breasts. "Let that be your one and only warning. Fuckin' pay attention and don't be so damn naive."_

* * *

Curling his hands into fists, it was so damn frustrating. He had been laid since then and yet he was still dealing with this shit. Just thinking about what he had said and done made him feel as if he were still pressed against her. Her could practically feel her warmth against him. _'Wait..'_

Opening one eye, he nearly blew an internal gasket. Not from anger, or from being surprised but because he was already having a hard time keeping to himself for various reason and yet there she was. Snuggled beside him, with her back turned to him was Fuu. She had two large pelts on her, one covering her upper body and the other stretching over her legs and covering her feet. She was close enough that he could feel the little bit of heat radiating from her but she was far enough that they weren't bumping or touching. Her hair fanned out behind her, twisting and reaching out to him- like it was begging to be pulled.

She had been wearing her hair up almost ever day now that the desire to pull it had almost subsided. This was the third time now, he was temped to wrap his fingers in it, and pull. Pull her hair down so she would have no choice but to arch her back and cry out to him until her neck was pulled back to the point that she could do nothing but gasp for his mercy. To have that round ass push back against him where it counts- for her to squirm just because he touched her hair.

Slowly pulling his left hand out from under his arm, and out the pelt, he reached out. Bit by bit, he got closer to them. To the brown locks that looks like strands of the finest silk.

Suddenly rolling onto her back, Fuu turned her head to face him. Blinking her long lashes at him, his finger tips were close to poking her eyes. "Mugen? What are you doing?"

 _'I have no fucking idea..'_ Reaching forward a bit more his finger tips gently brushed her temple. Continuing the path, he laced his fingers through some of her hair and stretched his arm out until the hair ran out of length and fell to the ground. Her large eyes eyes stayed focused on him, not looking away or darting from place to place. Her lips were slightly agape, and warmth had finally returned to her face- making her lips and cheeks pink. Bringing his hand back in, he placed it on her neck so he was able to twirl some hair through his fingers, and he kept his thumb on her jawline.

"M-Mugen? Ahh-" More like a gasp, her head jerked with his hand.

Her damp locks twirled between his fingers, he had finally tugged on it. Raising his hand away from her, her head followed. But, it wasn't as satisfying as he would have wanted. He needed more. Raising himself up to his knees, he twisted his wrist some more, wrapping more of her hair in his grasp. Bending at the elbow, she had no choice but to follow until she was sitting upright, sliding the pelt off her upper body.

Grabbing onto Mugen's wrist with both hands she brought herself closer to give her scalp some slack. "What's the big idea, what are you doing?!" Looking up at him the best she could, a flurry of butterflies formed in her stomach. His face was calm and his eyes, his gaze was firm. It was like something switched in him.

"I thought I told you-" Giving her hair a little tug just to gain another gasp from her, his eyes trailed down from her face to everything that was uncovered by the pelt. She was wearing the outer layer of her kimono, which despite her attempt at wringing out the water, was still damp. It clung to her in places like it was a second skin, showing the lines of her body, and every bump it had to offer. Her slender collar bone was peeking through the top folds. The lines guided his eyes down further to the clinging material that squeezed against her chest. Two small bumps on the center of each breast poked out thanks to the cold air against the wet material. "-that you would only get one warning."

 _'One..warning?'_ At first she didn't know what he was talking about. What warning? When had he ever warned her of anything other than paying attention to everything arou- _'Oh!'_ The image of him hovering over her came flooding back to him, the words that were nothing but senseless static to her at the time were now clear to her mind. _'Let that be your one and only warning. Fuckin' pay attention and don't be so damn naive.'_

"I ain't one for games. Either you move...or I don't stop."

Her heart felt weightless, like she was falling but only her heart moved. Her face grew hot and her palms sweaty around his strong wrist. _'Don't stop?'_ Pressing her knees together, her body seemed to react to the words before her mind could clue in. She itched, where she had never "itched" before. Keeping tempo with her heartbeat it seemed to throb, spreading an unfamiliar warmth between her legs. Pulling her gaze from his, she couldn't help but lightly bite down on her dewy lips. Loosening her grip from his wrist one finger at a time, she let her hands fall down to her sides. Nervously balling them on the floor beside her hips, she was too embarrassed to look back at him. Looking downwards, she nodded her head the slightest bit.

 **Lemon ahead, I suggest you skip it if you don't like that sort of thing. I will mark below where it is "safe"**

* * *

Her bright eyes pulled away from his, and she bit down on her plump bottom lip, only making it swell and brighten in colour. She was quiet but in the silence of the night, her uneasy breathing screamed in his ears. Looking down at her, something nagged at him that he shouldn't have said what he said. But no matter how she reacted, he didn't have any intentions on letting her go a second time. Her hands slipped down from his wrist, down to her sides, and there it was. Maybe it was just her shifting herself, or maybe he bobbed during his daze- but it sure as hell looked like she nodded.

"Look at me."

Taking in an uneasy breath, her body seemed to forget how to function. Her heart pounded inside, cracking like a firework. Looking over through the side of her eye, her face slowly followed. Before she had moved the candles to the other corner, so one of them wouldn't knock it over while they slept, and so the light outlined Mugen's body. His front was mostly shadowed but it still caught some light that bounced off the walls, it highlighted the front points of his body and the shadows contoured the crevices. The years of running wild, and fighting had sculpted his body quite well. He wasn't overly muscular but his lean figure helped distinguish every bulge and muscle.

Inhaling from her nose, she exhaled out her mouth, leading her eyes up from his abdomen to his face.

Loosening his grip on her hair, he snaked his hand to the back of her head, running his fingers through her hair in the process. The touch was soft, sending shivers down her back, until his hand once again gabbed a handful of hair and he pulled it down. Snapping her head back, she let out a grunt as she was forced to look up more.

Dry cracked lips crashed down onto hers. He kept his grip on her hair but pressed his hand to her head so she couldn't back away. Taking full advantage of catching her with her mouth open, he didn't hesitate to shove his tongue inside, exploring the new frontier. Despite her going through the same terrain and weather as he, her lips were soft and moist. Pressing his tongue against hers, he swished it once, gaining a muffled moan from his inexperienced partner.

The air she tried to breath in was hot, perhaps because it was Mugen's breath instead of the crisp freshness surrounding them. She had seen people kiss like this before, but she would always look away- embarrassed. It felt strange, his tongue, his saliva were a different texture and consistency than hers. Even the temperature coming from him was different. Pulling his tongue back, he pressed his lips hard onto hers one last time before tugging her bottom lip lightly between his teeth.

Her chest heaved and with shallow breaths, she looked up at Mugen, who seemed to stop and stare at her. She had never been kissed like that before. She only had the "pleasure" of a few quick smooches here and there from potential suitors, all of which she dropped because she wouldn't be bothered. Or rather...they didn't bother her, not like this. She had no idea a kiss could be like that, that it could leave you gasping for air, and for more.

Pulling his face from hers, he wanted to look at his work thus far. Her eyes seemed glossed, and heavy lidded, and her face was painted a new shade of pink that he had never seen before. Her bottom lip was swollen from his assault. Smirking, he liked how much she reacted to something so small. Diving back down, he wouldn't give her the luxury of a break, not after how long he had been waiting. Crashing his lips back onto hers, her lips wouldn't open again. Running his tongue along the line where her lips met, he wanted access. He wanted to feel her gasp into his mouth- she would have to wait till later to express herself. But, if she didn't want him to go back in, there were plenty of other things he could fill his mouth with.

With one last lick of her lips, he pulled back slightly and to his satisfaction her mouth followed his. Smirking, he still had a firm hold on the back of her head so she wasn't able to meet his lips again. The whiskers on his chin scratched at her neck as he lowered his mouth from her jawline, drawing a moist line with his tongue down to her neck. Pulling on her hair once again, he forced her to look up just like he had before. With her chin up, her neck was stretched, giving easier access to her milky skin. His hot breath bounced off of her and back to him. Her neck contracted and expanded as she tried to control her breathing. It was exciting how she reacted to such small things. Closing his mouth over part of her neck, he sucked, slowly adding more and more pressure. Even though he was touching something that wasn't his, and something that could never be- he was sure as hell going to make sure **_they_** knew.

She could hear him slurp against her neck as the pressure only intensified. It was warm, it was wet, and it was starting to hurt. Swallowing the saliva that had pooled in her mouth, she finally brought her hands up from the floor and to his lowered shoulders. Lightly pushing on them, she could feel him resist, pushing in closer to keep his spot. "M-Mugen, it hurts."

With a **pop** , he released her neck. Taking a quick look at the purple and red mark he left, he knew it wouldn't be enough. Raising back up, his face was looking down on hers, and her hands fell from the fronts of his shoulders to his lower chest. Staring down at her, there was no way in hell he was going to stop. Her eyes as glossed as before and her breathing was hitched. "You ain't got no right to say that to me."

Grabbing her left wrist with his right, he pushed it away from him, and ran his hand across her exposed collar bone. Fingering loose the fold of the kimono, he touched parts that were still covered. His fingers grazed the line of her collar bone, following further and further while dragging the material away with his hand. He continued his trail until he brushed against the bottom part of her scar and to the knob of her shoulder, removing the damp kimono down her arm.

Bringing both of her hands up, she clutched at the fold, keeping her chest covered but allowing the material to shrug off her shoulders

Holding her by her bicep, his fingers easy wrapped around it like her arm was nothing more than a twig. Lowering himself again, he ran the bridge of his nose against her collar bone, taking in her sweet scent that was amplified because of her rapid heart. Resting his forehead against the scar on her shoulder, he finally released the grip on her hair and held her other bicep in its place. Like a mountain goat, he pressed against her with his forehead and helped guide her down onto her back.

The damp material folded under her back, but it was no longer cold. The bit of moisture that squished out was now warm because of her body heat. Taking a big gulp, the flurry of butterflies in her stomach had turned into something much more intense- like a hurricane. Her kimono wasn't tied from the start so now the only thing keeping it closed were her sweaty, nervous hands that were clutching it closed at her chest. She could feel the dried skin side of the pelt on her legs, making her nervous for what was all exposed underneath. Somehow during the push down, her knees had finally parted and Mugen placed his left knee between hers so she would no longer be able to try to hide her hot throbbing center.

Moving his face lower and lower, he could feel her balled hands under him. They were keeping him from the chest that he joked was flat, but he knew that it was really quite the opposite. Sitting back up onto his heels, she really was a sight to be seen. He hadn't even removed her clothing yet but somehow, she looked more alluring than anything he had ever seen before.

Her hair, fanned out around her head like a sheet of silk. Her clothes, shrugged off from her shoulders, only hanging on by her delicate hands- like it could somehow stop him from opening it. Her right leg was bent and the other one was trapped under him, the pelt was barely hanging onto her anymore and from the looks of how her stomach was exposed, everything else beneath it would be as well. The wet chill of his shorts had helped keep him composed beneath, but he could feel the material keep him from fully springing up. Firmly placing his right hand beside her face, he explored the floor boards beside her with his left hand. Running his fingers against the floor boards, he traced them down until they met with the dip of her tiny waist. Under the light sudden touch, he could feel her tense from under him. Pressing himself down on top of her, she finally moved her hands so their chests pressed. He could feel the hard perky peaks press into him, and with every heaving breath she took, they pressed to him even more.

Finding the opening of the material on her side, he snaked his hand inside, finally feeling her skin that he had never touched before. Just like the rest of her, it was smooth, just as a woman should be. Trailing his hand up her side and along her tiny waist, he lifted himself slightly, so he could fit his hand between their bodies. Stopping, his fingers brushed under the bottom of her breast, poking and tickling the skin.

"Muge-" Attempting another protest, it only granted him access to where she tried denying him before.

Crashing his mouth, and tongue to hers he was going to relish the sweet flavour. Everything about her was sweet, her scent, her taste, even her whispy breaths. Turning his head, he swished his tongue, and to his surprise, hers lapped back.

He could tell she was green at this, her tongue didn't have much power but he liked it. He was in control of the situation. In control of her. Not holding back, he inched his hand up higher almost completely filling it with her entire breast. As soon as the contact was made, she squirmed under him, letting out a muffled moan into his mouth. It was delicious. He kneaded the handful under his palm and fingers, eliciting another sound from her each time he did so. He wanted to hear more. He took the pink bud that topped her breast between his thumb and index finger. He pinched it, giving it a tug all while breaking the kiss.

With heavy breaths, she snapped her head to the side. Her senses were all overwhelmed she couldn't help the moisture that was building in her eyes; among other places. Closing her mouth, she blocked it with the back of her hand to try to keep herself from making anymore embarrassing sounds. But his assault on her breast was making almost impossible.

The pinching, tugging, it was somewhere between pain and pleasure, or perhaps they went hand in hand.

Pushing back the sides of her kimono properly, her finally got a full view of her chest and tightly toned stomach. Firmly grabbing onto her left breast with his right hand, he kneaded it. Her voice squeeked out her lips as she closed her eyes- trying to maintain herself. But, it wasn't enough for him, he needed everything she had. Flicking her nipple one last time, he quickly latched onto it with his mouth. Lapping, and rolling it under the pressure of his tongue.

Finally snapping her head back, her eyes shot open, still trying to hold back the sounds that wanted to erupt from within. "M-MUGEN! S-Stop!"

Her voice was more than inviting, the breathy shallow moans that overruled whatever protest she was trying to make only made it sound better to his ears. Each time she said his name it was fuel to the fire. Ceasing the kneading of the other hand, he kept the breast in his hand, feeling her heart beat beneath. Trying to resist the urge to smirk, his lips closed around her breast. Sucking harder, he purposely bit down with his teeth- making sure he would leave a mark. Pulling his head back, he pulled her breast before releasing it with yet another tantalizing pop. Hovering over her, he licked his lips.

"I told ya...I'm greedy, and I'm gonna take what I want." Letting go of her other breast, her held himself up by his left arm and slowly trailed his right hand down her body. One by one, each muscle of hers tensed and tightened as he brushed against them. Finally meeting the top of the pelt, he grabbed it and tossed it aside, showing her full form. His eyes trailed down her trim and tight stomach, and down to her trimmed and tidied curls. He hadn't even touched her there yet and he could already see the glistening juices. Bending his knee again, he pressed it higher against her, feeling the heat and the soaking state that she currently was.

With a gasp, Fuu squirmed some more under the pressure of his intense gaze. An intense and overwhelming heat formed between her legs, nerves getting the better of her, she tried to close her legs together but was stopped with Mugen's left leg. Looking down her body, at the intrusion of his leg, her eyes caught sight of something else. Stiff and proudly protruding from beneath Mugen's shorts, was his manhood. The hurricane in her stomach intensified. She had seen drawings of them in specialty books before, and she refused to look at Buta's during his horrible attempt before, so her imagination was running wild at what it may look like.

Raising his brows, he saw she looked distracted. He followed her line of vision, and to his surprise, the girl was curious. He really wanted to show her, but now wasn't the time. If he were to shed of his layer, he might jump the gun, and then it would be over. This was his only chance, and damn, he was going to make it count. Smoothing the palm of his hand back up over her hips, the rough scars and his long fingers followed. Brushing past her hip bones, his hand dipped down onto her thigh, rotating around so his fingers were now in the lead to the heat radiating from her glistening center.

Uncertainty and unfamiliarity caused her to jerk her hips up and squirm her legs at his touch. "W-wait, Mugen." Arching her back, her chest heaved in the air, and her hips bucked back when she could feel something foreign slick at her entrance.

Running his finger along her outer lips once again, he swore he could have started a fire with the heat radiating from her. Her body was already reacting well to him, and the fun was only just starting. Without further delay, he smirked at her as he aligned his hand and finger in the necessary place.

Plunging in his middle finger, her walls clenched around him, like she was trying to swallow him up. He was finally rewarded with an unthrottled moan from her. Tossing her head back, she bucked her hips once again, only to be met with his palm, which pushed his digit further inside. Snickering to himself, he liked how sensitive she was, he hadn't even moved it and yet she was wringing in the palm of his hand (literally). Curling his finger upwards, he continued to do so at a steady pace.

"Ah~!" Biting on her lip she tried to maintain the sounds that were trying to escape her. All of it was embarrassing, the sounds she made, the way he looked at her, and the squelching from between her legs. Grabbing at his wrist, she wasn't sure exactly what she wanted. She held it as security, maybe he would take it easy on her, but at the same time...the curling, the wiggling, all of it was turning her to putty. Biting down a bit harder on her lip, she moaned, but didn't allow herself to unleash everything she was keeping to herself. She could feel every bit of his finger within her, the way it curled, and the way he rubbed her inside- it was almost too much for her to make any sense of it. She was throbbing and this wasn't enough to make it better.

Her body was screaming for more.

"Don't be holding back on me." Like a growl, he was trying to remain patient- she was almost ready, and he was almost out of patience. If she wasn't a damn virgin he wouldn't be wasting his precious time like this, but damn it, he had a reputation to uphold. He had done so much bragging to her about the broads he's had, and how a girl like her would never be able to hand someone like him. But in reality, it was the other way around. He was going to make sure this would be engraved in her memory forever. Pulling out his finger from her, he quickly plunged it back in plus another one. Her velvet walls almost didn't allow for two but he needed to ease her up, make room for what was to come. Using his other hand, he placed it firmly on her thigh, to keep her from wiggling so much.

Her hands desperately grabbed him, unknowingly digging her nails into his forearms. She was no longer trying to push him away, but she was trying to ground herself to him, trying to control the spasms that jolted her body. Every thrust of his hand made her want to cry out, but her nerves were still getting the better of her. The feeling of two fingers inside was nothing like having one. She could feel the sides of the two fingers sliding against her with every plunge.

Fluids pooled in his palm and onto his knee that was still keeping her legs apart. Slowing his rhythm he slowly pulled both fingers out of her, stringing along the juices that still connected them. He saw her face flush with more colour and her eyes tear up from the unknown emotions and feelings that were surging through her.

Her eyebrows arched up, she was relieved that the pressure was no longer there, but she felt like she was on fire. There was a throbbing from her still virgin lips that she wanted to be rid of, and something told her that it wouldn't be long now.

Rubbing his thumb and two fingers together, he felt how slick they were, before making sure to make eye contact with her as he licked his fingers clean. She adverted his eyes but he wasn't going to allow her to relax, he was going to make her indulge in everything. Hovering back over her body, he crashed his lips back onto hers, making her taste herself. She seemed to be getting use to the action, her tongue fought against his nicely, embracing and cradling it- taking in everything he was pushing at her. Growling into her mouth, it vibrated within her.

Lowering himself onto his forearms, he pressed his entire body down on her. Her bare breasts pressed against him, her stomach moved as she breathed just like his did, and something else firmly pressed against her thigh. Slowly and firmly, he pressed his hips down on her leg, pressing his hardness against her each time.

Placing her hands back on the tops of his shoulders, she melted under his kiss. His body pressed firmly against hers, shocking her went she felt the dampness of his shorts and what came with them. At first, she wasn't quite sure what it was, and why he felt like that. But then she remembered the hidden figure beneath his shorts that was still waiting to come out.

With a final press against her lips, he pulled himself up, giving the two of them a breath of much needed air. Sitting back on his heels, he knew he couldn't wait anymore. Struggling to keep his own breathing controlled, her eyes were on him, and damn, he was going to give her something to look at. Slipping both thumbs into his waist band, he slowly started pulling them down, and her eyes followed. The cool air touched his exposed cheeks but the front was caught on a certain stiff appendage. With the right motion, he flipped the waist band out and over, springing and bouncing up his pride and joy.

Her already rapid heart skipped a beat, or three. Her nerves went sky high and her mind went fuzzy. She tried not to stare at it but this was her first time truly seeing one. She couldn't help think it was ugly, but then again, she didn't think they were meant to look nice. Pictures she had seen didn't help prepare her for the real thing. The large helmet shaped end, and the long thick base was intimidating. How was something like that supposed to fit inside another person; inside her?

With a ferocious tug, Mugen parted himself from her and pulled her legs far apart, placing himself between them. His hands pressed her knees down towards her stomach, curling her body and leaving nothing to the imagination. He could see everything. Based on past experiences he's had, this position was the jackpot, there was never a time a woman didn't scream his name or clench around him. He heard loosing your virginity hurt for a woman, and that this wouldn't be any exception, so the least he could do was curl her toes and make her throat raw from screaming his name. All he had to to was push past her discomfort and pain- he knew it wouldn't last. But it still didn't mean he was looking forward to her pain.

"Don't look!" Placing both of her hands over her throbbing desire, she got a slight feel at just how wet she really was. She had heard the term, "wet", before but didn't quite grasp it until now.

"Looking ain't what I want to do.." He lied... part of the reason for picking this position was because he wanted to see her face and himself as he entered her. He wanted to see both of them at the same time. He wanted to see her eyes roll to the back of her head and the face she makes when she moaned; moaned because of him. He didn't want to miss a damn thing. Pushing his hips forwards, his smooth head pushed against the backs of her fingers were they blocked the entrance he wanted to soil.

"I'm scared! It's going to hurt...isn't it?" Biting her lip she was actually looking for guidance in this situation. She really trusted Mugen, he always saved her and helped without any rewards. He really was one person that she knew wouldn't lead her astray or intentionally hurt her.

Knitting his brows, his patience was noting but a thin thread, ready to snap at any moment. He understood her reservations, sex was a big deal to chicks, especially their first time. "I can't tell ya for sure..." Pressing his tip against her hands again, his length slid up over the top of her skin, waiting for her answer. He didn't want to be the bad guy here, but damn it, he just might be. Maybe being the bad guy right now was just what he needed to do. After all, he was going to be doing something much worse to her sooner than she knew. So maybe hurting her now would soften the blow later.

Swallowing the large lump in her throat, her heart felt like it was going to jump out of her chest and she could feel her legs shake. She slowly removed her hands from blocking the place that he wanted to explore, she quickly covered her eyes and gave him a quick nod.

"Don't cover your face. I want to see it." Pushing her knees down further onto her abdomen, she was left completely open. The small slit between her legs twitched as it was still flooded like a waterfall- even if her mind was unsure, her body knew exactly what it wanted. "Look at me Fuu!" Barking his orders at her, her hands moved from her eyes and onto her chest- trying to calm her violent heart. The thin thread of patience he had was being used up trying not to plunge straight into her.

Pushing his hips forward, he dabbed his tip in her juices, tracing it along the too small opening. He felt her tense up at the feeling, and he didn't blame her. It was tough enough getting two fingers inside, and he liked to think he was of a larger size. Aligning himself with her, he pressed the tip of his head in her virgin lips. They spread, trying to accommodate his large rounded end.

Her eyes clenched shut, feeling him start to enter.

"Don't close your damn eyes! Just look at me."

Slowly opening her eyes, she looked at him. His eyes darted up from her face, down to where they started to connect.

Shuttering, it felt so damn good. His entire head wasn't in yet but he was having troubles keeping his composure. How long could he last like this?

"J-Just do it!" clenching her hands on her chest, she braced herself. Nothing could help prepare her for what was to come, but she had heard enough stories from women in passing about how the pain was supposedly momentary. How it was like taking a shot of strong alcohol, better to take it quickly so the stinging goes away.

Breathing uneasily from his nose, the excitement was almost more than he could bare. Listening to her, he pressed himself as far as her body would allow him to. Her slick velvet walls hugged every part of him, like an almost too small glove.

She let out a pained gasp and her legs continued to shake under the pressure of his hands. Just like with his fingers, she could feel very inch of him inside of her. The feeling of being stretched as no exaggeration; she could feel herself widening to accept him. She could feel his own heat radiating from inside her.

He looked down at their connection to see he had about half of him still left outside. Pulling out slowly, he pulsed very slowly back and forth, being sure not to go past the slick marks left on him from her lips.

"I-It hurts, Mugen.." No longer being able to keep her word her eyes were shut and her jaw was clenched just as tight. As he moved, he rubbed against her inner walls, and the pain "panged" when he pressed inwards.

"-Thought I already told ya" His own voice swayed under his shallow composed breaths. He would have to play the bad guy. "-I'm a greedy man." No longer being mindful of the barrier that was keeping him from going further, he pushed himself all the way in, gaining a pained gasp from Fuu. Instead of holding his place inside, he began a steady pace. The sooner he moved, meant the sooner she would get used to it. Her slick walls gripped all around him in a way no one else had ever done. "So fucking tight." Grunting, he couldn't help but press in harder at the end of every thrust, hitting her deeper inside. Each time he was rewarded with an encouraging moan from Fuu who was writhing beneath him. Keeping the same steady pace, he hit her insides hard, bouncing her ample breasts like rippling water.

His eyes watched as he connected deeper and deeper inside her. Her legs still shook under the pressure of keeping them to her abdomen, and even though it made him feel disgusted, he would have to push past the tears streaming down from her eyes.

She couldn't deny that it hurt, but the tears were uncontrollable. They weren't caused by the pain, but they were caused by the unfamiliar emotions that were serging through her. No longer able to hold back her voice, she would worry about the strange sounds she was making after- because she had lost control. Every time he pushed back inside, a pinching sensation would hit her and spread throughout her. It didn't hurt so much anymore but her mind was processing once again somewhere between pain and pleasure. And when that sensation hit, her voice would call out, and Mugen answered.

Still looking down, he watched himself go in and out of her. It was almost surreal, not just because it was Fuu, but because of how god damn tight and perfect she felt. Watching helped him process that it was really real, he had popped her cherry. The annoying whiny ass kid from almost three years ago was moaning because of him, and he wanted her to do so much more. The way her tits bounced, the way she kept on trying to shy her face away, and even the way she tasted, was nothing like he had ever experienced before.

 _'Fuck..'_ Slowing his pace he knew he was nearing his limit already. He didn't want it to end. The sounds she made, her face, her tits bouncing after every thrust and the way she squeezed him, he wanted to make it last longer.

"D-Don't stop." Surprised by her own words, Fuu clasped her hand over her mouth and adverted his eyes. She never thought she would say such a lewd thing. The tears pooled in her eyes as the more pleasure she felt, the more they swelled up and blurred her vision.

Stopping completely, Mugen looked at Fuu, completely surprised by the request that he would be more than happy to fulfill. At a very, painstakingly slow pace, he continued. Pulling out almost completely, he barely pushed back in halfway. Between the slight moaning from her and the squelching of her juices- it was like music to his ears.

Finally letting go of her legs, he lowered his body against hers, hovering over her so his face was by the side of her head. Her legs still hovered in the air with her toes pointed but it changed the angle of impact- making it more comfortable for the two of them (to which she was grateful). Her moans were now the first thing he heard, as she pressed her head against the side of his. Slowly he picked up his slow pace, until he was hitting her hard and purposeful to the point where her body bounced off his.

Gripping his biceps that were on either side of him, she wasn't sure if she could take much more. She was sure that her nails were digging into him but, she felt like if she didn't hold herself down she would spin out of her own body. "M-Mugen!"

His name came out as the most seductive moan that he had ever heard. Like she flicked a switch inside of him, he no longer executed the methodical and consistent thrusts, instead dove as deep into her as he could, muffling her sweet voice with his mouth he nipped and bit at her lip, pulling it harder and harder. His thrusts started to become erratic and inconsistent- he was losing it. Releasing her lip from his teeth he leaned his sweaty forehead to hers, trying to hold himself together. Her mouth agape, moaning with every move he made and her eyes building up with more tears from the new sensations she was experiencing. With a primal growl, she felt the rumble and his hot breath on her face.

"Say my name again."

"M-Mugen-"

"Again!"

Wrapping her legs around his waist her nails dugs into his biceps, she felt like she was about to be split into two- and she loved it. "Mugen!"

"F-Fuck!" With one last thrust, he pressed against her as hard as he could, releasing everything he had inside. Grunting with release, it was like his whole body and mind went numb as everything rushed to exit. With small, thrusts he pressed himself against her again and again with every pulse and twitch of himself in her insides.

Biting her bottom lip to keep from moaning out, he was pressing into the spot that had been driving her crazy. _'I..I can feel it.'_ Not sure what to make of the hot substance she could feel filling her up, she hid her face tightly against Mugen as he pulsed inside her. The throbbing heat she had been feeling was finally gone, and she was left short of breath and a fuzzy mind.

With his forehead still pressed to hers, his eyes finally shut and he took in all the sensations around him. The way their breathes were out of synch, and how they breathed in each other's hot breath. The way her body felt against his own, and how incredible it felt still being inside of her. Even though he was done, he couldn't bring himself to pull out yet. He knew that when he did, that would be the end of it. Everything he had done, that they had done, would be over.

Pulling her hands, and her nails from his biceps, she had a hard time focusing her eyes on him. His face was so close to hers that she couldn't see much other than his closed eyes and the ridge of his nose. He was so warm. Bringing her arms up and over, she couldn't help but hug him around his shoulders and neck. She had almost forgotten about the wounds on his back, so this would have to do.

He could feel her shift, and her arms wrap around him. If he had it his way, he would have accepted it. But, he wasn't the cuddling type- that's what he told himself anyway. Slowly raising himself back up, he finally opened his eyes. Bit by bit, he backed himself up onto his heels, pulling himself out of her. His member bobbed when it was finally freed and the results of his actions leaked out. The creamy coloured substance was streaked with red- proving that he was the first. Not just the first but as of now, he was the one and only.

Grabbing a discarded pelt, he cleaned himself of the smears and smudges left on him. He almost tossed it to Fuu to use, but his ego wanted her to sit with it-with a part of him spilling out of her. He wasted no time pulling his shorts back up.

 **Mature situation done.**

* * *

Unsure on exactly what to do, Fuu slowly sat up, but her body was still shaking and a pain she wasn't expecting slowed her. It felt like she had pulled a large muscle between her legs. Everything felt tight and overworked, making her wince until she was all the way up. Her kimono was still barely hanging off of her arms, so she pulled it back on to cover herself. Folding the damp material over her, she covered herself the best she could without moving too much.

"Now get some damn sleep." Tossing a pelt over her like he had done earlier, he grabbed the ones he was using before their little "expedition" and he laid himself back down beside her with his back facing her.

Tucking some hair behind her ear. She was even more exhausted than she was earlier. He body hurt in ways it never did before, and in ways she didn't know possible. Wrapping herself back in the pelt, she laid on her back and stared up at the ceiling. Her body was tired but her mind was wide awake. It would take forever for her to calm down enough to be able to sleep. Everything that just happened seemed so surreal. The way she felt, and the way he touched her- she never could have imagined that it would feel the way that it did. Mugen's hands were nothing like Buta's. Everything about it was different, and the act of being touched wasn't as scary as her memory made it to be. Not when Mugen was the one doing it.

"Say..Mugen?"

"Hm?"

"After this..I think I want to go to Ukita, and see my mom."

Looking at the wall of pelts across from him, his body felt colder than it ever had before. _'Her mom? Ain't she dead?..'_

"I left before they even gave her a grave...and I think I'm ready to go back." Turning her head over, she looked at the back of his head. His hair was close to dry already, and it started to go back it its unruly shape. "-Think we can make it there in one piece?"

In the end, he didn't answer her. Because he didn't know how. Eventually her eyes went back to the ceiling, and as the silent moments passed them, her eyes grew heavy. As her lashes and lids fluttered shut, the vagrant next to her couldn't seem to shut his mind off. For the first time in what felt like forever, his right hand was warm. It felt everything it touched, and of course, the feeling of Fuu lingered, just like his guilt.


	17. Chapter 16 - Unhonourable Man

**2nd Last Chapter**

 **Lots happening and it is very fast pace (like one thing after another). But I decided to heck with it!**

 **The next chapter/last chapter is going to be around 20,000 words. I decided to end this one early because I liked a certain point as a cliff hanger (you'll see). And as always, I apologize for any errors, I do my best to proof read.**

 **Song - Kuroda Bushi (I recommend giving it a listen and looking up the English lyrics. I feel it fits this story quite nicely and might be bringing it into play again next chapter).**

 **Chapter 16 - Unhonourable Man**

* * *

"Hn?" Barely cracking her eyes open, the sound of the door slamming open pulled her from her dream. The shack around her was filled with a grey hue- the sun was up, but it was still hidden behind storm clouds. Rolling from her side, to her stomach, she pulled her hands out from under her, to prop her shoulders and chest from the floor. Like looking through clouded glass, her vision was still blurry. Mugen was standing in the doorway, letting cold air in. Because she had fallen asleep right by the door, the chill came at her. Even under the pelts, she could feel goose flesh build. "Mugen?" Blinking her eyes a few time and raising her eyebrows, her vision became clearer. Colour came to the form that was in the doorway, the size and shape were also distinguished.

No, they weren't wearing red or topped with the unruly mop of hair. Nor was their skin bronzed by the sun.

"Ka-Kawara?" Resting her elbow down, she rubbed her one eye.

Stepping in, the friendly face smiled at her. "I'm glad you're alright." Looking at her, she still looked tired despite having just woke up. Her eyes, though they were still bright, looked puffy and slight bags shadowed beneath. _'Must have been a hard journey here..'_ It was hard to think that he had been travelling by horse, and had the luxury of sleeping in Inns every night, where as he had condemned her to go by foot, without any money. It was unfortunate, and if he had it his way she would have joined him, but they had the role of bait to play.

"How'd you find us?" Talking through a yawn, she covered her mouth.

"Mugen." Stepping towards here and kneeling over, he offered her his hand. "-He came and brought us here."

"He did what?" Slowly sitting up to her knees, every muscle on her body fought against her. Everything was stiff, sore and overworked. And a new kind of "pang" hit her between her legs, the parts of her that had once been untouched now hurt from the events of last night. Gripping her kimono tight, the layers were still folded over nicely so she wasn't revealing anything. "Jeez...he could have waited for me." Sighing, she tucked some hair behind her ear and accepted Kawara's help.

"Hai, but this way we can ensure you're finally safe." Holding her hand in his, he started to help her up. He expected her to feel cold to the touch, but surprisingly enough she was warm despite the pathetic shape of the weather and the shack. _'What's that?..'_ While he was admiring her warmth, and the silky like sheen of her hair, he couldn't help but notice a very distinguishable mark plaguing her delicate neck. It didn't quite look like a bruise, but it was deep red, with a tinge of purple. It was blotchy, allowing some of her skin to speckle through it.

"Huh? Kawara, are you okay?" Furrowing her brows a bit, she leaned her head in a bit, inspecting his expression. She hasn't exactly spent a lot of time with him but in the time she had, she never saw him looks like this. One way or another, he was always smiling, even if his lips weren't, his eyes did. But not now. His face seemed...angry? No, there was no reason for him to be angry, maybe he was just hungry. Finally standing up all the way, she couldn't help but grimace at the sore state she was in. Why didn't anyone tell her that having sex would hurt after? How long was it going to feel like this? And would it feel like this after every time?

"I could ask you the same thing, Fuu." Dropping his arm down, he still held onto her hand firmly.

"What do you mean?" Curling up one side of her mouth and sticking out her bottom lip, she was confused.

"Are you okay?"

 _'Ohh, that's what he means.'_ Pulling her hand out from his she flexed her arm, all while patting the small muscles that she was attempting to display. "I'm fine! Tip top shape really!"

Looking her over, everything other than the bags under her eyes and that mark, looked good. Her resilience was really admirable, but... Closing his hands into fists, he turned around. "Get dressed. We're leaving." Walking out, he shut the door without waiting for her response.

With the door closing shut with more force than necessary, it was obvious that something was bothering Kawara. Perhaps he was just feeling the pressure of what was going to be happening. Going over to her hanging clothes, they felt dryer than she was expecting but they still weren't 100% yet. Shedding herself of her outer layer, she started to dress. Folding the white inner layer over her chest, she winced when the material rubbed over her breast. Looking down at herself, the nipple of her left breast was noticeably darker with shades of purple and red. Feeling her face grow hot, and surely red, she remembered Mugen's oral assault on it. But surely the mark itself wasn't making it hurt.

Poking the tip of the nipple, it hurt, but she was curious to just how big the mark really was. Pulling on it, and her breast, she saw that the mark was quite small, not covering half of her nipple but it stretched onto the skin. Wincing again when she pulled, a closer look she saw that where the nipple connected to the areola was cut. Letting go of herself, she puffed up her cheeks and quickly put on her layers- ignoring the slight irritation on her chest. _'Jeez..Mugen, you could have been a bit gentler..'_

Running her hands along her neck and under the collar of her clothes, she untucked her hair. _'Wait..didn't Mugen do that to my neck?..'_ Wide eyed, she pressed her palms to her neck, with her wrists pressing together at the front her fingers wrapped around the sides. _'IS THERE A MARK THERE TOO?! D-Did Kawara see?!'_ Bending at the knees, she crouched down into a ball, trying to smother her face and her embarrassment. _'Maybe..Maybe he didn't see!'_ Standing back up, she tucked the hair pin back into her obi and decided that keeping her hair down and tucked in front of her shoulders would be the best. Walking over to the door, she cleared her throat, trying to compose herself.

"I hope you know that your actions will hurt her more than you."

"Hmph...why the hell would I care?"

 _'Hm? Mugen?...What are they talking about?'_ Holding up on pushing the door open, she couldn't help but go as still as a statue.

"Because, we had an agreement."

"To hell with that. You're just pissy 'cause I got to have some fun with her before you."

"You think it was just fun for her? What do you think she's going to say when you leave?"

 _'Leave? Where's Mugen going?'_ Finally pushing open the door, Kawara snapped his head around, looking at her. Like he didn't expect her to be ready so fast. Mugen on the other hand, didn't bother looking at her. He kept his stern, cold glare focused on Kawara. "You're leaving, Mugen?"

* * *

 _Everything was a blur to him. He knew he was being moved, he could feel it. But his eyes and mind couldn't process everything as his scenery slowly changed. He knew he was brought back outside, he could feel heat against his skin-unlike the cool stones that had jabbed at him after he was hung up like a butchered animal. But how was he moving?_ _His legs were too numb to do anything, and numbness consumed most of his body. He seemed to have more focus when he was strung up against the wall, maybe it was because blood was rushing back to places that it hadn't in awhile._

 _'Ah..hell...'_ _Eyes fluttering closed and back open, he didn't want them to close. If he did, he wasn't sure how long it would be until he was able to open them again. He couldn't waste more time like this, not here, not with these people. They seemed to know too damn much for their own good, talking about him like he wasn't even there. And then they had to bring her to see him. Why the hell would they do that? Why would she let them? He had gone along with her for some dumb fucking reason, because she had asked to nicely, she begged him not to attack. So he didn't. But.."Fuck...'_ _He was in no shape to do any fighting, let a lone protect her. It would be one or the other at this point._

 _But.._

 _Why was he even considering it?_

 _Being forced down onto his knees, he nearly toppled over. The floor, everything felt like it was moving around him- even though he was the one off balance._

 _"Mugen, of the Ryuku Islands."_

 _'Hah?..did someone just say my name?' Lifting his neck up, he looked up to the front of the room where the voice came from. Or at least where he thought it came from. Eyes still barely hanging open, he couldn't help but spit out some blood infused saliva._

 _"Someone get him some tea and bread for crying out loud. And didn't I tell you guys to get him cleaned up before bringing him in here?"_

 _Finally letting his head slack back down, he jus stared at the floor boards half focused. Both of his arms were lifted out to his sides, not by him but each arm seemed to have its own attendant. Every now and then a hand, was seen, passing a roll of bandage across his chest and stomach, then it would disappear._ _'Why the hell...'_ _HIs arms slapped back down at his sides, knuckles hitting the floor under his slack, and numb demeanor. Before he knew it, a lack luster tray of food was set out under his gaze. Slowly, he started to bring up his arms and hands, but they felt like they had 100 pound weights attached to each one. When his hand finally got to a piece of dried bread, it was in his mouth in an instant._

 _For awhile, the room was filled with the crunching and chewing of the bread, followed by loud gluttonous slurps of tea._

 _"Mugen."_

 _"Hm?" His breath bounced off the rim of the cup of tea and came back to him. Almost forgetting about the blurrs that were sitting at the end of the room, Mugen looked up- finally able to focus on things around him. At the front of the room, was the big guy with the fat lips, and the shrimpy bastard that was with Fuu earlier._

 _"No need to look at us with such hostility. I'm here to discuss your current situation."_

 _Gulping down more tea, Mugen looked back down at the last piece of bread before taking a large bite. "The hell you know 'bout my situation?" His words were muffled and crumbs fell from his mouth, only to get caught in his overgrown whiskers on his chin._

 _Holding up a flyer with Mugen's face on it. Kawara's face was stern, smug, and belittling to Mugen. "More than you know."_

 _Swallowing the large stale bite, he didn't bother washing it down with some tea. This wasn't his first time seeing this poster, he had seen one hung up shortly after they left Fukui, but his wasn't the only one up. Hers was there too. Who the hell would have thought the posters would be plastered all the way out here too. "And what the hell do you want to discuss, exactly?"_

 _Clearing his throat, Kawara closed his eyes. "September 8th, Terazawa Inn burned down by young Female: Fuu, and her male counterpart: Mugen. Male: wanted dead or alive. Girl: wanted alive." Opening his eyes again, he didn't even stop to take a breath. "The list goes on from there from slaughtering and burning capital officials while they camped, and then a murder and possession of narcotics in Fukui...Now I'll only ask you once, how did you and Fuu manage to get involved with Hisayuki Machii?"_

 _"Misyuki Hachii? Who the hell is that?"_

 _"Hisayuki Machii! Listen!"_

 _"Still don't know who the fuck that is..."_

 _"You don't seem to know the severity of what you've gotten yourself and Fuu involved in. A very dangerous man is after the two of you." Looking away from Mugen, Kawara looked to the man next to him. "Ishimatsu, what did the guards say about his behaviour?"_

 _"He showed no signs of withdrawal or addiction."_

 _'What the hell are these two going on about?...Addiction?'_ _Mugen might not have been the smartest person, but even he was able to read between the lines. "Does this have to do with all that opium?" Trying to slack his back, his body wouldn't let him. The pain, was still fresh, as were the wounds._

 _"So..you do know at least something, if anything." Sighing, Kawara adjusted his feet from under him. "How did you two get involved in all this? Where you a seller?"_

 _"Hell no." Well, not exactly. He had worked in that underground extracting unit back in Osaka for the day. He even got paid damn good for that too. "If you know so damn much why the hell are you asking me?"_

 _With a twitch of his brow, it was clear that Kawara didn't have any patience in regards to Mugen. "We've been following tracks of opium for months now, and we believe at the end of it all is Hisayuki. We've had no proof, but it seems he is using his influence to get a hold of you and Fuu. If you're willing to help lead us to him, we may be willing to help you."_

 _"Hn?" Arching his brow, the words seemed right, they were even tempting, but what the hell could he do to help them? This shrimpy ass brat seemed to have a pretty good grasp on things, hell, he even had the wanted posters and names that even he couldn't figure out. "Now why the hell would I want your help? And lastly, what the fuck makes you think I would help assholes like you?"_

 _Ishimatsu, the large man next to Kawara seemed to tense as he went to stand up. But extending his arm out in front of Ishimatsu, Kawara stopped him. "Because it's not just Hisayuki after you, to be hones, we could just let you go free and follow you until something happens. That wouldn't keep me up at night, but it seems that someone else has posted the search for Fuu. And I'm sure you wouldn't want her to get in the hands of someone with malicious intents?"_

 _"..You don't need to be worried about her..I got it handled."_

 _"Oh? So you know of Butadon? And his reputaiton? They call him, The Boar of Kansai. He has quite the reputation for his obsession with women, specifically he lik-"_

 _"Enough! I don't need to hear that shit from you." Trying to keep his face in the same expression, he could feel his blood boil. Butadon, there was no mistaking that it was that Buta bastard that put his hands on Fuu, and sent the assassin to the brothel. But he thought he had burned that son of a bitch down with the rest of that forest. "-And you mean that, that bastard is after her?"_

 _Nodding his head, Kawara, tried to hide his smirk. He wasn't use to dealing with someone as violent and rash as Mugen, but it seemed he may be starting to understand more of what was really happening. "I need you to tell me everything, so we can work at making sure Fuu doesn't fall victim to Buta, or anyone."_

 _'Fuck..' Running his hand over his face, Mugen wasn't sure what to do. What the hell was Fuu to this guy anyway? And why did he care? Or maybe he was using Fuu as an excuse to get what him to cooperate?_

 _"If you help us, I won't hesitate to pay you for your help, in more ways than one."_

 _"Oh? And how do you suppose to do that?"_

 _Listening to Kawara's offer, Mugen nearly shit himself. This little brat had more influence and power than he would have liked to think. He was not only offering him 5 times what the poster had said, but he was also going to destroy his criminal record. Apparently lots of people were after this Butadon and Hisayuki guy and they were willing to reward those that were willing to not only bring them down, but the operation. It was easier said than done, but fuck, even if it was just the money it was well worth it. Maybe if anything, he could get his money and get the hell out of here. He and Fuu could go somewhere else, maybe travel east. Agreeing on a hefty price, Mugen agreed to not only help but to let Kawara and Ishimatsu in on the events that lead them here. He told them everything that happened in Osaka, including how Fuu got herself involved in it all, and he even told all he knew of Fuu's interaction with Buta. It was hard to remember everything but as he kept talking it kept coming back to him. Even the dying shitty village where they ran into those "collectors". Apparently, according to Kawara, they were working under Hisayuki, they not only collect funds from unpaying customers but they get new workers to work in the mines that help fund the entire operation. Then he told of his experience in Fukui, where he was blamed for the murder of some guys that just happened to have processed opium over their bodies. Hell, he even talked about finding the wanted posters and purposely tearing them down so Fuu wouldn't see it._

 _It all seemed too much to just be coincidences but damn, it was just their luck. Everywhere they went, it was all connected, and they were caught in the middle of it all._

 _"I haven't told her a damn thing about the opium in Fukui...or the wanted posters..or even the bastard that has been following us." Narrowing his eyes more, he bore into Kawara. "-And it's gonna stay that way. She doesn't need to know shit."_

 _"So, this all started because she happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time?"_

 _"Yea, she has the shittiest luck I've ever seen."_

 _Nodding his head, Kawara fell silent for a bit. Although their meeting this morning was brief, Fuu's eyes appeared over and over again in his mind. "Do you think you can protect her?"_

 _"Protect her? What the hell do you think I've been doing?"_

 _"I mean, more than just now. In the future, tomorrow, a week from now, 5 months from now, and even a year. Do you still plan to be with her?"_

 _Freezing, Mugen wasn't sure how to answer. He hadn't thought about it, but he didn't even consider the time that they would have to part. Did they even need to? Hell, she didn't seem to mind going from place to place, so maybe...maybe they could just keep going._

 _"Fuu might seem resilient, but she's still a girl. Can you provide her with more than just your protection? Can you guarantee her food everyday? Warmth? A home?"_

 _"Enough! Fuck, why does all that matter anyway, huh? It's her choice that she's been hanging around me. I couldn't fucking care less what the hell she does." As soon as the words left his mouth, his chest felt heavy. It seemed like the "Mugen" thing to say, but..why did it feel like this?_

 _"Then I would like to add one last thing to our deal-"_

 _"Hn?"_

 _"-Leave Fuu with me. After this, after we get Hisayuki, and Butadon. I will turn a blind eye to you, and you can continue on with you tyrannical life-"_

 _Closing his hands into tight fists, never in his life did he want to beat the life out of someone so bad. His lip went up, baring a few of his teeth just like an animal. 'Who the fuck does he think he is?'_

 _"She will have Osuzu here, they seem to be close, and this way, she will have food, warmth, and a home of her own. She won't have to be in a constant state of fear, she will be accepted as family here."_

 _"Fuck- so you just think I'll leave her here to play wife with you?"_

 _"And you expect her to continue on this dangerous path due to your recklessness and selfish behaviour? I can provide Fuu with far more than you ever could. Think of what's best for her."_

* * *

Scratching his scalp, he exhaled- almost as a sigh. But he still didn't look at her. "Once I get my money, I'm outta here."

"Where are we go-"

"You ain't coming with."

 _'I'm not?'_ Like fifty pounds had just crashed down onto her, her shoulders slumped. "When are you coming back?"

His mouth pursed, and twisted, as his cheeks went in- he was chewing again. "I ain't." His eyes still looking everywhere but her, he finally released his cheeks, making his face somewhat normal again.

"Heh." Quickly pushing out her breath, her shoulders jostled, like someone had just made a joke. "Very funny Mugen. Besides I still haven't paid you your dumplings yet."

Standing between them, Kawara wasn't sure what to say- if anything at all. All of them, except for Fuu knew this was going to happen but it still made him uncomfortable. The look of Fuu's face kept on changing. Times she seemed baffled, then her eyebrows would arch up as she tried to convince herself it was some kind of joke- but then her brows would knit together, shaking under the emotional toll.

Clenching his jaw together, he knew this would be the final straw before everything came tumbling down. Finally looking at her, her face was twisted with all sorts of emotion. "Last night was payment enough."

"Last night?.." Swallowing the lump in her throat, her hands balled up into tiny fists. Her body was shaking- was it from the cold? No...not likely. "So that's it huh? 235 dumplings, that's all I'm worth to you?" Looking down to the ground, she needed to concentrate on something, or this surge of emotion would bubble to the surface.

"You said it, not me." Turning from the two of them, he almost expected to hear a sob, or at least something come from her. But there was nothing. There was no _"Wait, Mugen"_ nor did she curse him. She didn't call him out for the person that he was. Instead, he made his way down the muddy path with only the sound of squelching mud under his feet.

Kawara watched as the red vagrant finally accepted his place. He had concerns on whether or not Mugen would actually follow through with it or not, but he was pleasantly surprised. After all, this was what's best for Fuu. Even if she didn't accept it at first, eventually over time, with Osuzu's help and his patience- she would forget Mugen and hopefully come to accept him.

"Fuu, are you okay?" Turning back to her, her head was still hung low, and her arms and tiny fists were shaking at her sides.

What was she supposed to say? Obviously she wasn't okay, but at the same time, she wasn't exactly surprised. She knew at some point they would have to part, but she honestly thought it would be similar to last time. There would come a point in the road that they would just go different ways, and maybe someday, some year, they would find each other again. Or maybe, there would be the odd chance that the fork in the road wouldn't come...that they could just keep going... _'No...don't be stupid, Fuu...'_

"Fuu?"

Biting down on her tongue, she needed to distract herself, she needed the pooled emotions to go back down. She couldn't cry, nor could she just stand here in her own self pity. She could blame Mugen all she wanted, she could hate him, scorn him, but she was accountable for her own actions- and she knew that. Most of all, she was just disappointed. The warm coppery fluid grazed her tongue- she bit too hard. Looking up to Kawara, she swallowed the taste and her emotions.

"Let's go. We have somewhere to be-" Smiling, the smallest bit of blood come out from the corner of her mouth. "-Right?"

Nodding his head, he reached forward and wiped the small speck of blood from her mouth with his thumb. Her mouth stretched in the direction he grazed his thumb, and her smile ceased. "Go get your shoes and we'll head out. I have a horse waiting at the end of the path."

"They broke. But it's fine. I can just walk without them." Waving her hand, she wanted to dismiss the subject and just get out of here.

"Here." Turning around, Kawara crouched down, just like Mugen had done the other day. Looking over his shoulder at her, he smiled. "I'll take care of you, Fuu."

 _'I can take care of myself..'_ But she was tired, and sore. Setting her hands down on Kawara's shoulders, she fit herself onto his back where he reached around and held onto his hands beneath her rear, like a cradle. "Kawara-"

"Yes?" Walking slowly, he made his way down the path with Fuu in tow.

"-Can we eat some shrimp tempura?"

Laughing out his nose, it wasn't what he was expecting. "Of course. Whatever you want."

Once they got to the bottom of the path it was just as Kawara said- there was a horse waiting. But as was Mugen and 6 other men. He didn't bother looking at them, not that she expecting him too, but if she was going to play that game then so would she. Once she was propped up on the horse, Kawara sat behind her and she didn't have view of him anymore. Sitting on the horse was painful, even though she did it side saddle- the bumps and hopping of the horse bumped against her sore nether-regions. It felt like a type of strained muscle that she never experienced before, so it was hard for her to keep her face straight. She couldn't help but mark this down as two of three things that were to go wrong. Even if this wasn't significant to other's, or even to Mugen, she couldn't help but feel just as bad as she did when she laid Momo to rest.

"Say, Kawara. Is it okay for us to be out like this? I mean, it seemed like you took lots of precautions to make it seem like we weren't working together."

"It doesn't matter anymore. Everyone is where we need them to be. All that's left is making sure you're in a safe place." Gripping onto the reigns tightly, he looked over his shoulder to Mugen who was walking near the rear of the horse. It was a mistake. Looking back at him, or rather, already staring, was Mugen. His eyes drilled into Kawara's, his brows not knit, but the sharpness of his eyes were enough to cut into him. It was nothing short of malicious, animalistic, anger. Clearing his throat, Kawara managed to keep a straight face as he turned from Mugen and to the back of Fuu's head. "Fuu, I was thinking..maybe you could start to call my Sousuke from now on? I mean, only if you want too. With how close you are with Osuzu, and with everything that has happened I can't help but feel like you're part of the Kawara family now."

 _'That fucking son of a bitch...'_ Closing his hands into fists, Mugen's knuckles cracked. He did his part, he said what he needed too, so why the hell was shrimpy rubbing it in? There was literally nothing stopping him from gutting him and the high horse he was riding on. Well, maybe the accompanying guards but they wouldn't serve to be a problem. Releasing his fists, he laced his fingers behind his head, clenching his teeth. "Well ain't that just fucking fantastic."

"It is." Taking in a deep breath, they finally entered into Toi. "Thank you, Sousuke."

Toi wasn't quite as large as other places that they had been and the streets were still empty because of how early it was. Maybe it a few years it would be a booming port city, but for now, it was just coming out from being a village/town. The streets were set up in a grid pattern, making the streets straight and narrow. Unlike other places that had strange angular intersections and junctions. If it weren't for the mist lingering, she would have been able to see everything better but, she really could care less about this place. She just wanted to get in and out so she could get on with her life, after all, her debt to Mugen was now paid. There was no need for her here.

They continued down the main street that was just as empty and quiet as all the others. The ground was still in the process of absorbing the rain, leaving small puddles to be stepped on. Turning down some other streets, they came to a rather large building, that faced the sides of the town. Trees still lined the sides and back of it-not yet being cleared for more development. The building itself was blatantly plain, boring, and only stood out because of its size, and large cloth "sign" hanging from the front: _"Toi Hotsprings Inn"_. With the help of Kawara, Fuu dismounted from the horse. But instead of being set down on the ground, he hoisted her off to the side, onto the clean stone slab that started the pathway into the building.

Curling her toes and then raising them up, she offset her bodyweight so her feet wouldn't entirely suffer from the surface. The stone was cold and wet under her feet, but it was definitely better than mud and pebbles.

"Go on inside, Fuu." Giving her a reassuring smile, he pushed his hands out- indicating she should get going. "We have some matters to discuss in regards to tonight."

"Oh? Um..alright, I guess." One stone after another, her feet slapped against them until she reached the door. Taking one last look back, Kawara was still smiling and he gave her a slight wave. Going inside, she didn't even need to say anything, the hostess guided her back to a room and gave her supplies so she could have a bath- to which she declined since she just had one last night. Some grit on her feet wouldn't hurt, so instead, she opted for some hot tea.

Just setting her hands around the cup brought warmth to her hands- making her fingers tingle. The first sip, spread an internal warmth- she could feel it go down her throat and settle in her stomach. It wasn't until she was half way done her tea when she heard heavy footsteps nearing her room. Setting down her cup, she slid open her door, assuming it was Kawara or Ishimatsu (or it could have been anyone, the room she was in seemed to be the central part of the Inn, with rooms lining her left and right).

"Oh darn, you heard me. I wanted to surprise you."

Still down on her knees, her eyes were level with Kawara's legs who stood only a few feet away. Looking up, he held a tray that was giving off a delicious aroma- making her salivate.

"-Shrimp tempura, right? That's what you wanted?" His face distorted with uncertainty as he looked down at the food he held and back at Fuu. _'_ "I can go ask them to make something else!"

"No no, it's fine! That's just what I wanted." Pivoting herself on one hip, she held herself with the palm of her hand and smiled the best she could.

It would have been better if she just went back into the room then and there, and ate her food. But for some reason, her body hesitated as she smiled walking down around the corner that Kawara had, came Mugen. He wasn't walking with as much spunk as earlier. His arm wrapped around his stomach and held onto his side. Continuing down, Mugen knocked shoulders with Kawara so he could get by- not once did he look at either of them.

"Ehm. Mind if I, come in?" Looking up, Kawara shuffled his feet a bit. "I mean, just to talk. I don't have any ulterior motives, I swear!" Fumbling with his words, his face was pink.

Fuu imagined there would have been a time where her face would have been pink too, and she would have talked in a similar manner. It's so funny to think that Sousuke was the head of a house, and the head of a vigilante group and he could still fluster like this. It was hard for her to imagine someone like Sousuke ever having any ulterior motives. Moving herself from the door, she shifted back over to her cup of tea. Sitting across from her, Kawara reached over and set the tray down.

"It smells so good!" She wanted to dig in so bad. Even though her stomach hurt from something other than hunger, her mind was telling her that food would help.

"Don't mind me, help yourself. It's all for you."

"Itadakimasu." Without hesitating, she took her first bite of the crunchy fried shrimp. And it was heavenly. She didn't go all out like she use to when having meals, but it didn't take long before the amount of shrimp on the tray dwindled. Looking up from her food, she had almost forgotten about Sousuke, who just seemed to be watching her with a smile. Swallowing her bite, she cleared her throat. "Sorry, it's just so good."

"Don't apologize. A healthy appetite leads to a healthy life."

Nodding, she took another quick bite. "So, what was it that you wanted to talk about?"

Sitting up a bit taller, Sousuke pulled his shoulders back. His lips moved a bit, but no words came out- he seemed to be struggling. How exactly should he ask it? Was it too soon? _'No..better now than later.'_.

"I know what Mugen said must have hurt you. A lot."

Slowing down her jaw, she had one last crunchy bite before her appetite really was as good as gone. Yea, she was definitely hurting, but she was trying her best to not. So why was he bringing it up?

"-Now that you know, he isn't interested in continuing on with you, after all this. What are you going to do?"

Looking down from him, her plans hadn't exactly changed. The only difference was that Mugen wouldn't be there. "I was thinking about going to visit my mother's grave, in my home village near Ukita."

"After that?"

Shrugging, she slightly shook her head. "Haven't thought that far yet."

"Then... would you like to come live with me?" From his jaw, up, his face flushed red. Steam practically came out his ears when he slapped himself- keeping his hand there, he covered most of his face. "-I mean, not with just me. But with Osuzu, Ishimatsu, and the rest of us. As part of the clan."

Stunned, all she could go was blink. Her lips moved like his had, but again, no words came out. She had received offers before, mostly from employers to stay and live with them in a spare room. "As in a maid or working hand?"

"No! I-I mean, sure if that's what you want. But you don't have to. You could just..spend your days in leisure. And maybe one day.." Shaking his head, he cut off his words and scratched the back of his head. "I mean, just think about it. You're very dear to Osuzu, and we would all love to have you."

"Ok."

"O..Ok!?" Almost raising up to his knees. Sousuke's eyes widened, and his heart beat against his chest.

"-I'll think about it." Gulping down the last of her tea, she set it down. "You can't just spring something like that on a girl and expect an answer right aways. And my mother's grave is far away from here. If I go there, there's no telling just how long I'll be. And I'd hate to leave you and Osuzu waiting like that."

Plopping back down on his rear, he embarrassed himself. _'But at least she'll think about it!'_ His eyes sparkled and gleamed, and he could hardly contain the smile on his face. "I'll wait as long as it takes."

From their the conversation almost died, until somehow the topic changed to the weather. She couldn't remember if it was him or her that had said something but once they did, the conversation took off. They started discussing many things, like games they played as children, and even sharing their favourite jokes. Fuu seemed to be doing most of the joke telling, getting lost in her own sense humour. Sousuke bashfully looked away as he explained that most of the jokes he knew were told to him by the soldiers and weren't appropriate for a ladies ear. Fuu even went as far as to tell Sousuke about Momo, everything from the day they met until the recent events of her passing.

It was like the flood gates had opened, and there was no stopping the words that were coming from her. If it wasn't one thing, then it was another. And Sousuke sat there, with a smile on his face, taking in every word. Neither one of them knew exactly how much time they spent talking, but eventually, Ishimatsu came to collect him.

"The first round is heading out now, Kawara." Ishimatsu's deep voice was silent, but the two of them could hear it through the door.

"Oh my, it's that time already is it?" Resting his hands on his knees, Sousuke stood up with a pop from somewhere on his body. "Thank you for today, Fuu. It was a nice breather." Going over to the door, Sousuke barely slid it open before he looked over his shoulder. "Stay put for the rest of the night, okay? We'll be back when it's all done."

"Huh? You mean I'm not coming with?"

"No. They haven't been following you for awhile now. No one but us should know that you're here so you'll be safe. So relax tonight." With one last smile, Sousuke stepped out of the room and closed the door. Faint mumblings from him and Ishimatsu could be heard until they finally walked out of hearing distance.

Taking in a deep breath, the room felt incredibly empty, and lonely. Falling down onto her back against the futon, she draped her arm over her eyes. What was she supposed to do now? Whenever she was alone her mind tends to wander, which results in unnecessary anxiety and emotions. She didn't want to feel that way, which was why she kept talking for so long with Sousuke. As long as someone was here with her, she wouldn't have to think about it- about Mugen. And here they were, leaving her alone all night while they dealt with these people that were apparently after them. _'Wait...did..did he say following me?'_ Moving her arm from her eyes, she stared up while knitting her brows. _'Someone was following us?'_

* * *

 _ **Earlier that morning**_

"Go on inside, Fuu. We have some matters to discuss in regards to tonight."

"Oh? Um..alright, I guess."

Mugen couldn't bring himself to watch her walk away, he just hoped she would actually listen for once in her life and just go inside. The girl was still as dense as ever, and she still didn't know what was going on- just as planned. But sometimes, Mugen would almost preferred that he was the same way, but he wasn't. He was able to pick up on things, make assumptions, especially when it came to this Kawara chump. He seemed all friendly and whatnot on the outside, but Mugen had seen the look in his eyes change without any notice. Not that it was enough to scare or intimiate Mugen, but unfortunately, it was more than just his own livelihood at stake. His own misdeeds now could cause backlash for Fuu.

Shuffling of feet around Mugen indicated that she actually did listen and she went inside- where she wouldn't be able to see or hear what was happening.

"Can't say a damn thing without your chumps to back you up huh?"

"They're just here for reassurance. I'm not stupid enough to believe someone like me can handle a person like you. Now, is there anything you would like to report?"

Clicking his tongue, Mugen would've preferred to skip the small talk and just get it over with but business first. "There's been no sign of them since around Shizuouka."

"Hm..I see..so, they're probably close."

"Heh. They probably got here before your dumb ass did." As soon as the words left his mouth, a foot crashed against the center of his back, pressing his sheath/sword against him- bringing him down to his knees. The pain reached far down into the roots of each lash in the area of impact- making his sides and stomach clench at the pain. _'Fuck.'_

Taking a few steps closer to Mugen, Sousuke set the end of his sheathed blade ontop of Mugen's shoulder. "Anything else you would like to report?"

"Yea-" There was plenty that he wanted to say, so much he wanted to do. But, Kawara's involvement in all of this is what made it possible to end it. But...was Mugen ever the kind to hold his tongue? Looking up, Mugen stared into Kawara's eyes with intensity. "-I had her first." The end of Kawara's sheath hit Mugen's stomach- but he refused to look down or away. Nor did Mugen crumple down, at this moment, this was his old trump card.

Pulling his sheathed blade out from Mugen's stomach. Kawara took a slight step back, changing his stance. "You might have had her first, but what's one night to the rest of her life?" With more force, Kawara drove the blunt end back into Mugen's gut- finally making Mugen grunt and crumple. "Don't forget your place." Adjusting the blade/sheath back in its rightful place Kawara sighed. "I don't like being like this you know, but this is for her. Now if you'll excuse me, I believe she requested some food."

* * *

"Do you understand the plan?"

"Hell, get in, kick some ass, then get out. Ain't that complicated."

With his arms stretched out behind his back, Mugen propped his weight back on the palms of his hands and kept his legs crossed in front of him. They were getting ready to go out, to finally get this thing done. But if Buta, Hisayuki, and whoever else they brought with them were really here then some extra precautions needed to be taken. Everyone was given a general map of the area, showing where the gold mine was, and all the ways to get to it. Instead of going in as one big group like most "law enforcement" did, they had decided to go individually, or even as groups of two. Kawara and Ishimatsu had set up times for everyone to start going out, they would choose their own path to get there, but they weren't to approach the mine or go inside until night fall unless told other wise. They didn't want to bring attention to themselves until it was time to attack. The tricky part would be getting the workers out of the mine, it was known for cave ins and Kawara didn't want to lose any unnecessary lives.

"I don't get why we don't just bring it down on all those mother fuckers..." Adjusting his position, Mugen stuck a finger in his ear. "Just end it like that."

"That's too reckless. We don't want to endanger any of the towns people that work there. And there's no saying if there's any other exits or not." Ishimatsu had been quiet on all matters recently, but he was able to speak to Mugen calmly and respectfully despite everything that was happening.

"Che..I guess.." Pulling his finger out from his ear he looked at his findings before wiping it off on his haori. "How many are staying here?"

"None. We need all the help we can get out there." Looking at the map again, Sousuke didn't bother to look at Mugen-he knew exactly what he was getting at and he didn't need to worry. Fuu would be safe, there was no one that knew they were here. And they had arrived at different times and booked the rooms speraticaly so they weren't near eachother. To anyone else it would just look like random groups of travellers. Looking at the lines of the map, he needed to figure out his own coarse of action. Almost all of the men except for him, Ishimatsu and Mugen had already set out. This morning, around the time that Mugen had found them, he had sent one of his men into the mine- he would have to wait until later to get the recon information. Unfortunately they didn't have a detailed configuration of the inside of the cave, so this way they should have an idea on where they need to go once they get there.

"Well-" Standing up, Mugen looked at Ishimatsu. "There's no point in waiting around here...I'll go first." Wiping his nose, he waited for Ishimatsu's nod before he left the room- not bothering to wait for Kawara's response. But the door didn't slide shut behind him. Firm, hardened fingers wrapped around the edge of the door, holding it open.

Pushing through the door, and beside Mugen, Ishimatsu slid the door shut.

"-Wait, Ishimatsu, where are you going?" Kawara's voice could be heard from inside the room.

"I need a moment with Mugen."

Turning, the two men, Mugen and Ishimatsu, stood facing each other. No longer in the confinements of the Inn, the cool air and breeze prodded their skin. The grey clouds above, still hovered, covering the sun and everything beyond. Mugen's clothes, which were finally dry, blew and weaved along with his air with the breeze- as did Ishimatu's. The last time they stood like this, Mugen thought he had came out victorious, leaving a proud and honourable man kneeling even after death. It was a clean cut, and it was the type of death that would do most men proud- but somehow, Ishimatsu survived.

"Please forgive my master. He's still young, and he lets his emotions get the better of him."

"Hah? That's what you called me out here for?" Hands and fingers twitching, Mugen's instincts were telling him to be on guard. Even though he knew Ishimatsu meant no harm, but he couldn't help his muscle memory.

"Why didn't you tell him?"

"Tell him? 'Cause, if he ain't smart enough to know they got the upper hand here then that's his fault. I would let the lil' bastard go charging in there but if he's dead then I don't get paid."

"No, not that. I wanted to know why you didn't tell Sousuke that you found, him?"

Curling his lips to a smile, he couldn't help but be impressed. "I guess you're more than just a gorilla after all." Kicking at a stone that was still stuck in the mud, he rubbed his neck. "-He don't need to know that's why."

"Osuzu."

"Hm?"

"I would do anything, to protect Osuzu. Dare I say I might even go against Kawara to do that. Honour, is more than recognition, more than completing a job, and more than status. Honour is sacrifice-"

"Man, I don't know that the hell you're talking about but, I'm just trying to cover my own ass, and besides-" Walking past Ishimatsu, Mugen stuck one hand in a pocket and the other above his head waving his hand. "-I ain't no honourable man."

Now with both hands in his pockets, Mugen walked around leisurely. He walked up and down almost every street, looking, listening, and smelling. Considering the time of day, the streets were still rather empty. A few people here and there, maybe 4 patrons sitting in a booth, talking, but other than that, it was empty. The rain these last few days were making it incredibly difficult to pinpoint scents, everything had been washed out and was left damp and musky. On the plus side, now that the rain stopped, he could hear better. Sounds around him were no longer drowned out by the pitter patter of the rain, or the howling of the wind. Even though the feeling of being watched had gone away when they were rejected from the ferry ride, he was constantly waiting for the moment it struck him.

Pursing his lips, and pushing his tongue, Mugen began to whistle. The tune lingered through the streets, although his version did the tune no justice- it was the only one he could seem to remember. Inhaling, the absence of his whistle uncovered the light tapping on the roofs beside him. With the vibrating of his throat, he roughly hummed. Hid brash and coarse voice, muffled by his own doing, got louder and louder until he finally let out the words.

"-Nomu naraba...hi no moto ichi no kono yari o.." Turning down the street, the trees that still lingered around the town came into view, only two streets away. "-nomi toru hodo ni nomu naraba..." His geta's squelched the mud beneath them, each step he took became more purposeful with every word. Why was this song the only one he could remember? Well, maybe it was because he liked to drink, and he liked sword play, but he knew the gruffness of his voice was doing it no justice. "Kore zo makoto-" Removing his hands from his pockets, his right hand slowly went up his body, gripping the handle of his sword., and slowly pulling it out a few inches, revealing the reflective blade. "-No Kuroda bushi.."

 _ **Clang.**_

 _ **Clang.**_


	18. Chapter 17- Land of the Rising Sun

**Sorry for the wait. I hope it's worth it and lives up to your expectations. Please take your time, this chapter is over 20,000 words.**

 **There is LOTS happening. 3 points of view. 3 stories that all merge into 1. I will tell you all know, I will be posting a very short epilogue/alternative ending separate from this story.**

 **CONTENT WARNING- NONCON, MATURE 18+ VERY GRAPHIC**

 **Chapter 17 - Land of the Rising Sun**

* * *

Thunder banged through the sky, shaking everyone's ears. It was as if the sky itself was trying to break through the grey clouds that had gathered. The sky, the weather, and the people were all disturbed- the ominous grey that had been lingering was seeping into the souls and livelihood of everyone. Through the sky, into the hearts and souls, everything was connected through one intertwining consciousness. As the sky grew darker and grey, so did their hearts, and evidently, their fates. The red string that connected everyone of them to the world seemed to increase in power and influence. What once seemed like a journey of a life time, was coming to an end. What seemed like the blossoming of love set up by the string of fate, was to crack and grow dull- just like the sky.

And the idea of revenge, could only end one way; with someone's string being cut.

Looking towards the shadowed window panels, she thought she heard a familiar tune. It seemed to carry through the air, and the more she thought she heard it, the louder it became. But as soon as she lost concentration, she could not longer pick it out- but then again, maybe it was just the howl of the wind. On her hands and knees, she crawled to the next few boards of the floor. The grooves started to look like all the others'. Had she already looked at this part? Her heart banged against her chest with the same intensity as the thunder. It was hard to maintain her breathing and to keep her tears from pooling out. The clouds of her mind had finally started to clear, but there was still some haze. Saying she was mad was an understatement- she was furious. All this time, someone had been following them. Something had been going on, even though she couldn't see or hear anything- but Mugen knew. He knew what was going on in the shadows. He knew all along, and yet he had the audacity to tell her to not be so naive. _'Maybe if you actually told me stuff I wouldn't be so naive! Jerk!'_

She knew it wasn't exactly his fault, but she wasn't trained with this kind of stuff. Not that he was really trained either but the life he had lived this far created a certain set of skills that she would never have. Running her fingers along the lines that connected the different boards, her nail easily fit between them, shifting the flooring.

"Fuu?"

Pulling her hands away, the board dropped back into place and she quickly turned herself around. It was like she just got caught with her hands in the cookie jar. Though the door remained shut, she knew from just the call of her name that it was Sousuke.

"Yes?"

Opening the door, Sousuke stepped inside. He was about to say something but he arched his brow with a chance of emotion. "What are you doing over there?"

"Huh? Oh-" Scrambling up to her feet, Fuu brushed off her knees and rushed over to him. "-nothing really. I was just doing some stretches." Fixing her hair over her shoulders again, she smoothed it out. "Is there something you need?"

His brow relaxed again and he chortled upon exhale. "Just wanted to let you know the rest of us are heading out."

Nodding her head, she straightened her back the best she could and presented the biggest smile she could (which wasn't more than a slight curl of the lips). "Be safe."

"Hai." Taking one last look at Fuu, her attempt at covering the mark on her neck wasn't working. Her silky locks were far too smooth and well maintained to cover up such a wild thing. Slowly reaching forward, he wanted to adjust it, he wanted to cover it.

"Sousuke?" Jerking back a bit, Fuu avoided his touch.

Letting his hand fall back to his side he turned around. "I hope to hear your answer when I get back.." As much as he wanted to look back at her one last time, he didn't. Instead he stepped out, closing the door behind him, to finally put the plan in place.

Finally letting go of the breath she seemed to be holding, her chest deflated. Sousuke wasn't the only one wanting answers. There seemed to be a lot going on around here that involved her, and for some reason, she was being left out of most of it. Everyone around her knew exactly what was going on, and it appeared that things were being decided for her. Looking over her shoulder, she eyed the boards that she had been inspecting. _'Not this time..'_

* * *

Spinning on his heel, he planted both feet firmly on the ground. Using the impact of the blades connection, Mugen, and his opponent both pushed off- distancing themselves. Holding his sword with one hand, the vibrations from impact still lingered up his arm. Curling his mouth into a smile, he eyed up his opponent. He was impressed, in more ways than one. Standing before him, was an incredible womanly figure, mostly clad in light hues of grey- so they would blend into the misty and clouded surroundings. Her outfit was like a second skin, hugging every bump and curve- hiding almost nothing. The only unsightly bumps were those of concealed weapons. In herr hand was a wakizashi.

"-Bout time that you show yourself." Making no attempt at hiding his travelling eyes, he was a bit disappointed that it was her and not the one that had been following them since Fukui. "Yer the one that was following me in Fukui, right?"

"You're as sharp as ever, Mugen." Standing up, and slacking their stance, she pulled the half mask down from her mouth- fully revealing her face. She had a job to do, but she wanted to see his reaction to who she was. It had been far too long since they saw each other. And although she vowed that she would one day find him to marry, things had gone too far. Breathing in the crisp air, the black material bunched on her neck. "It's been a few years, long time no see."

Looking at her face, it wasn't half bad either. Her lips were as pale as her skin and her cheeks rosy from the weather. "Huh? Have we met before?"

Buckling forward a bit, she couldn't believe he didn't remember her. It had been such a monumentous night for her, and they fought so well together. Between the two of them, they brought down the man that her father scorned, it was the biggest breakthrough of her clans history, and yet he had no idea. With a chortle, she was then what she is now- nothing but a whore who can use a weapon.

"Once, but that doesn't matter anymore." Dragging one foot on the soil, it made a semi circle around her. Bending at the knees, she readied herself. "Only one of us will be walking away from here."

"Wouldn't expect it any other way.." Cranking his neck to the side, pops and cracks worked their way down. He wasn't exactly in the most nimble shape to be facing off with someone like her. The damn ninja type or whatever the hell she was, they were annoying as hell. They were quick, and sneaky- more so than him. "Let's get this over with, I got to go deal with your boss."

Pulling her half mask back over her mouth and nose, Yatsuha steadied her breathing. She took note on where he had lead her- he was smart. If she was in this position she would have done the same thing. It was open, apart from the trees that were still a ways back. She would have no choice but to get up close, and she wouldn't want it any other way with him. His blade was clearly longer, and he would have a longer reach, so since stealth attacks were out of the question, she would have a better chance at keeping it close. Her arms and legs would work better in smaller spaces than his would.

Spinning herself to the side, Mugen's blade whistled through the air as it sliced. She didn't expect him to attack first, but then again, he had more at stake than she. Using the momentum of her spin, she brought a leg up, and crashed it on the back of his shoulders. But he didn't faulter, without hesitation, he turned himself, swinging his blade and elbow. Bending herself back, the blade sliced the air above her chest and stomach, his left elbow which seemed to lead the direction of the blade knocked against her leg before she was able to bring it back down. Planting her palms on the ground and making her body into a bridge, her knee collided with Mugen's right hand which held the blade. Although now he was able to feel temperature and texture in his damaged hand, he still couldn't feel pain on it.

Slicing at her body left and right without restraint, she propelled herself away from him with a series of back flips. Just as quick as she got away from him, Mugen dug his getas into the ground, and launched himself at her almost matching her speed. Upon her final flip, her eyes met with his and she wasn't able to land like she planned. His body was still coming at hers, and she couldn't let herself get knocked down. Still having a firm hold of her wakizashi, she slashed it down between them, but Mugen was quick enough to bring his blade in between them, blocking the short blade from hitting him. However, because of the position of his sword, he had to stop his legs or else he could trip.

Finally able to distance herself, Yatsuha didn't hesitate to pull out two smaller knives. Throwing them at Mugen she lunged herself back at him- this time she would be in control.

Bobbing his head to the side and bending at the knees, he dodged the first knife that was going for his forehead. The other knife grazed his right tricep; slicing his clothes and opening a small thin wound on his flesh. It was almost enough to distract him, but their blades continued to clash and clang together time and time again.

"GOD DAMN IT, I AIN'T GOT THE TIME FOR THIS!"

"Is that right?" Breathing hard, they both parted, staring at each other as sweat dripped down their faces. "It seems to me like you've got all the time in the world, Mugen."

"Stop talkin' like you know anything." Tightening his grip on his sword, he wiped his free hand off on his shorts. He was really getting tired of this, for some reason, he couldn't help but feel that she was holding back. And it wasn't as if he was meaning to either, but it was hard to put your all into something when the other person was only half assing it. If she really wanted to, she could have sliced him a few times already, and the knives were thrown so lightly that he easily dodged them. The same went for him. There were many opportunities to end this but her attacks weren't sincere, it was like she was doing the bare minimum to get him to react.

"Don't you though? I mean, what's going to happen when this is all over? You have nothing waiting for you. So, I'd say you have nothing but time."

"Heh, that's some big talk for some little lap dog. All you do is go bite whoever your master tells you too."

As the words left his mouth, she was on him again. There was more force and more anger behind her attacks. Her speed seemed to increase as every slash of her wakizashi bounced off his blade in a last moment block. She seemed to float in the air as her knees and flexible kicks assaulted his left side as he was too busy trying to block her small blade. Her quick and compact attacks made it almost impossible for him to get any kind of attack in. If he moved his arm enough to get his blade in for an attack, he would leave himself wide open for hers. If he didn't have somewhere else to be, he wouldn't mind adding another scar and possibly seeing the crow men again...

"I am no dog!" Mid strike, Yatsuha released her wakizashi and quickly snapped it back with her opposite hand- changing direction and the angle of her attack. She could feel it, the resistance of flesh and bone at the other end of her blade.

* * *

 _"Yatsuha."_

 _"Yes, father?" Wiping sweat from her brow, she was only half way through her morning training. She felt rusty, and out of practice so she was pushing herself- or at least it felt like she was. She had been going without her father, or without anyone knowing because she didn't want them to see how far she had fallen from where she once was._

 _"What would you do, if I told you to leave?"_

 _Rotating her shoulders she loosened herself up a bit. "Huh? I guess I could come back after lunch?"_

 _"I meant this way of life." The eyes that always seemed nothing more than slight lines opened a bit, his big over grown brows shadowed the eyes that she remembered being brown, but where somehow clouded grey._ _"The age of the samurai..and the ninja are coming to an end."_

 _"Wha..what do you mean!?"_

 _Raising his hand, the usually stern man silenced his daughter. The slight lines that grew out from the sides of his face seemed deeper lately, making his eyes seem even smaller than they did before. The cicadas screamed at them as they stood facing each other in the training grounds that she had spent almost every day at since she was able to walk. This was the land of her family, of her clan. She had been gone for so long undercover that she almost forgot how clean the air was here. She had only been home for a month and every time she took in a deep inhale, it felt like the first and last time all at once._

 _"The world is changing. Masters, houses, traditions, are changing as well." Holding onto his hands behind his back, she never noticed how his shoulders slumped like this. "-There is no need for people like us anymore. Maybe..you should go and make a life of your own desire."_

 _Naturally, she thought he was kidding. This man, since she was young, all he did was drill into her about their pride, their honour as ninjas. He would make her practice for hours, pushing her beyond the breaking point. It didn't matter how sick, tired, or young she was, if she vomitted he would say that was just the weakness leaving her body, and if she ever dared to cry- he would make her do twice as much. So since when had these foolish thoughts entered his head?_

 _"Is this because of my training?! I'll get back to where I was before I went undercover! I swear, I'll grow beyond that even!" Bringing herself down onto one knee, she slammed one fist down on the ground and bowed her head. "Please, Father, this is the life that I desire."_

 _"Yatsuha, raise your head."_

 _Following his order, she looked up but kept her form down on the ground. She looked up to her father, who even though was standing in front of her, seemed to be so small. He didn't look at her like he normally would during a lesson or lecture, instead he was looking out to the trees around them._

 _"Yatsuha.. do tell me, what is the difference between existence, and living?"_

* * *

 _'Hm?'_ Trying to push the blade in more, her hand- no, her entire arm was shaking. She couldn't push any further. Her mind was consumed with the almost forgotten memory of her father. Back before he was consumed by the very product and industry that she was now fighting for. _'No..What..what am I fighting for?'_ She always told herself it was for her father, and Otawa. They were caught in all this just as much as she was. It was fight, or die. That was the life she was trained to live. Looking at her shaking hand, she understood now why she was shaking. Or rather, it wasn't her that was shaking at all. Mugen had a firm grip on her wrist, keeping anything beyond the tip of the wakizashi from going into his flesh.

"Ya know, all you girls, have the same damn weakness."

 _'I feel...warm?'_

"-And it's annoying as hell."

 _'What's this taste?'_ Upon exhale, a warm bubble fluxed up Yatsuha's throat- splattering red out onto her lips and onto Mugen's chin and collar bone area. _'Why is he bleeding there?..Where?..'_ Slowly look down on Mugen, there was no wound on him. Smacking her lips together more, her saliva seemed unnaturally warm, and thick. Her vision started to become unfocused, like she was somehow looking through someone else's eyes. Looking further down on herself, it was surreal. Pressed firmly into her stomach, was Mugen's blade. It wasn't the tip that had struck her, but the entire sharp end spread across her tiny, tightly toned stomach- so much that she couldn't see much of the thin blade other than what stretched out to the side.

Almost like a bubble, another splash of red burst from her mouth- this time it all pooled out her mouth and down her chin. Looking back to Mugen, his face was emotionless, all he did was stare at her without remorse, almost as if he was bored. With her free hand, she unsteadily placed it on his opposite shoulder- supporting herself, because she knew that as soon as he moved his blade- she would be done. Swirling around the fluids in her mouth, she spat it out, hitting Mugen's dirty "white" shirt. She felt warm all over, like someone was embracing her- welcoming and comforting her for what was to come.

And as her training, she wasn't scared. Fight, or die. That was what she was taught. That was the life her father set out for her, and the one she chose to follow.

She had heard many times that a person's life would flash before their eyes before they died, but...there was nothing. There were no smiling moments for her, no heart felt memories, nor could she remember anything beyond what was in front of her right now. Maybe because..she knew she had died on the inside a long time ago.

Squeezing Mugen's shoulder and the handle of her wakizashi as tight as she could with the bit of strength she had left, she leaned in, dripping some blood onto his collar bone. She hoped he would hear her. With her lips moving with her words, the blood hung in a line from her lips onto Mugen. Pulling her face from him, she wasn't quite able to stand up straight, but she hoped her lips were able to curl up the way she wanted them to. "Thank you, Mugen".Closing her eyes, she took in one last breath- and then it wasn't anything more than a pinch.

Swinging his blade in the air a few times, he cleared the blood from his sword before he stuck it back into its sheath. With his hand now free, he wiped his mouth and stared off into the darkening surroundings. Rotating his shoulder, he took one last look down at the woman. It annoyed him more than anything, almost more than her holding back. It was her eyes. Despite what was probably an incredible skill set, she held back. She purposely left openings before she would go in for an attack, all of which he tried to avoid. Even though he was in a time crunch, he couldn't bring himself to do it. There was something about her that seemed so damn familiar. The playfulness of her moves, and the strength of her voice. But her damn eyes...

Dull.

Tired.

Lifeless.

Even though she lay lifeless now, she had been dead on the inside longer than he could imagine. And for some reason, she chose him to be the one to end it all. He often found the same pattern when fighting women. They start off with a bang, throwing in everything they can but then...their strength dwindles. They start to get sloppy, they get tired and ultimately, they let their emotions take over. And she was no different.

Finally looking away he shook his arm that her knife had grazed and set off into the village towards the final destination; Toi Gold Mine.

* * *

As quietly as they could, Kawara, and his men approached the entrance of the mine. Despite all the extractions from the mine, the trees and plants still surrounded the small opening. Trees were over grown and from the right point you could see the only path that lead in and out of the mine. It was a small cave opening that would only allow specialty sized carts in and out. Different formation of rocks surrounded the outside, with vines and leafs draping around. None of them had been here before, so when they were making their plan they had assumed it was an open and rocky area which is why they chose to go out in smaller groups. 5 other men accompanied Kawara in his group, but if things had gone accordingly, they would be meeting with two other groups (including Ishimatsu's) and then one more man on the inside that would help guide them through.

As nice as the extra camoflauge was, it also brought with it other difficulties. Such as crunching and rustling. They had to be extra careful of how they stepped and when they stepped. Like a rippling tide, when one branch shook, it spread to other's- swaying like a silent bell that could give them away. Sousuke didn't want to admit it, but he was nervous. He and his men had brought down many criminals, and growing criminal organizations- but nothing of this magnitude. Nothing of Hisayuki Machii's size and influence. And if he was the kind of man that Sousuke thought him to be, then he would be here to take care of his assets. Though, to be honest he was only going by word of mouth that Machii was actually here. Somewhere along the line, it could have just been a big ploy, to bring the Kawara clan in and end them. But Sousuke was willing to risk it if it meant stopping Machii, and saving Fuu.

Finally coming across the other group, everyone seemed to be accounted for. With a few hand gestures, they veered directly behind the opening of the cave that was covered and cascaded with vines and branches. It was at the point that it was dark enough they could hardly see where they were walking, but at least it meant that if anyone else was nearby, they wouldn't be able to see or else they would have a lantern. A lantern or any source of light would mean he would be able to see them before they could see him.

Getting to the edge of the thick bush, the large group split into two, one line up going left and the other right-until they met at the front sides of the cave. Jumping down from the incline, their shoes "clopped" against the cold wet ground. They didn't curl around completely to the front, they stayed close to the rocks so they wouldn't be in view of the opening.

Across from Sousuke on the other side of the entrance, one of his men curled his hands around his mouth and called out.

The sound started as a low growl, then eventually grew louder into a yip like scream-identical to a tanuki. He repeated this for awhile and then they all grew silent as they waited for the response.

Mens eyes shifted to one another as their muscles grew stiff and their stomachs twisted. Sousuke and Ishimatsu weren't an exception. The gust of wind that slammed against them did nothing to cool down their nerves. The wind seemed to bellow against the entrance of the cave, creating an ominous sound.

Looking to the man across from him, Sousuke lightly nodded his head and so the man began his tanuki impression once again. Finally, after there was no response, Sousuke and Ishimatsu nodded at each other- both leading the groups into the mouth of the cave.

Instantly, their clothes and skin felt warmer as the wind was no longer able to get to them. A pugent smell stained their noses. It was a wet, musty, stale smell. Small crevasses from the top of the cave dripped and leaked from the absorbed rain from the last few days. Lanterns hungs every few yards on small rusty hooks that were barely hanging on to the worn wooden supports that stood at the sides and then were connected at the top by a plank of wood.

 _'It's quiet...'_ Leading along side Ishimatsu, they continued on, further and further into the cave. It seemed to be a straight and narrow path, barely wide enough to fit two people side by side, until they came to a split on the path. Left or right? Both paths were illuminated by similar lanterns, but everything was still eerily silent. There seemed to be no indication on where to go- if it weren't for the lanterns already lit they would have assumed it had been abandoned.

"Kawara, it's possible they're trying to split us up." Stepping forward a bit towards the right, Ishimatsu stood as tall as ever. "I say we stick together, and if we go down the wrong side, we can just come back and try again."

"Yes, but I don't want to waste any time.." Bringing his left thumb to his mouth, Sousuke bit down on his nail. They were going in blind, they had no idea the levels or trails of the cave. How much of a maze would it be beyond this point? How much further would they have to go? Taking in a deep breath, he continued on. "Everyone, stick together..for now."

They kept going, following the lanterns, eventually there was another turn, and they chose to stick with right so they could find their way back easily. Their path seemed to veer in different directions, and the air became stuffy and moist.

 _'Damn it, where are they?!'_ Getting impatient, Sousuke tried to push past those that were walking in front of him. But he was quickly stopped by Ishimatsu. Ishimatsu's composed and calm eyes stared into Sousuke's which were anything but calm.

"Everyone, stop." Removing his hand and arm from in front of Sousuke, Ishimatsu continued to tower over the still growing "man". "-If you intend on going on like that, you won't be walking out of here."

Tightening his fists at his sides, Sousuke felt a few knuckles crack. It was true, even if he wouldn't admit it. There was more than just the mission on his mind right now, and it was distracting him. If his father was here, he would give him one hell of a licking, and then a lecture. Ishimatsu was able to see right through him which only added to his adolescent resentment and emotions, but despite it all- he knew Ishimatsu was right. In situations like this Ishimatsu never caved or became irrational.

Taking a step forward, Sousuke, and all the other men stumbled. The ground around them shook and debris and small stones fell from the walls and cave ceiling. Just as soon as it started, it had stopped. Disturbed dust, soil, and clay lingered in the air, as well as something else. It was strong, extremely pugent, and it was already leaving their heads with a pain that they wouldn't be able to shake any time soon.

"What was that? An earthquake?"

"No-" Steadying himself, Sousuke stood up tall, like somehow it shook his confidence back into place. "-dynamite." Smirking to himself, it was no wonder they handn't come across anyone or anything yet. They were looking in the wrong direction. They had been turning left and right, following the straight flow, looking for signs of people. All of this, every turn, the lanterns, it was pointless. Looking down at the ground under his feet, Sousuke smoothed the soil under his geta. "That's where we need to go. Turn back, everyone. Pay attention to the walls, I think there's a path we missed."

"What do you mean, Kawara"

"They're below us. They lit the lanterns to drive us further away from them." Walking forward more to the front, Kawara looked at the ground. Apart from their own prints and some disturbance close to the walls, there were no signs of anyone. It looked like they set up lanterns and then left. "If they were this way, we would be seeing more tracks, but there's nothing."

"Hn." Furrowing his brows, Ishimatsu looked at the ground like Sousuke, and he was right. They had been so busy following the lanterns that they didn't bother looking at anything else around them.

Turning around, they retraced their steps. But this time they carefully looked at the cracks and crevasses of the cave walls- looking for anything that might fit a person. However they seemed to be having no such luck, and they were nearing the first turn they took when they entered the cave.

Once again the ground shook, but this time it was fiercer, making most of the men stumble down to the ground. Other's steadied themselves by holding onto the wave walls and the support beams. Larger stones, and bits of the ceilings fell down to the ground, leaving a few men with new bumps and goose eggs on their heads.

"Kawara that-" With the final vibration running through them all, Ishimatsu looked to Kawara, his composure starting to crack.

"-wasn't under ground!" Meeting Ishimatsu's eyes, they both knew what was most likely around the final bend. "Men! Ready yourselves and pick up the pace!"

All at once, the men loosened their grips and ran around the final bend. As a leader, Kawara needed to remain calm which was why Ishimatsu intervened earlier. But he was a foolish man to not realize what was happening sooner. All the lanterns, the lack of tracks, the silence. It was all to lure them in deeper and deeper. With heavy breaths and heavier footsteps, they finally came around the final bend. All at once, their running ceased.

Taking in one deep breath, Ishimatsu stood tall, taking a quick glance at Kawara before looking to the road block ahead. He couldn't help but regret his choice to not relay Mugen's warning to Kawara. He trusted Kawara, but he was still young, he was hoping that in light of the situation he would be able to use his problem solving skills and his experience from previous missions to anticipate all the possibilities. _'Cause, if he ain't smart enough to know they got the upper hand here then that's his fault'_ Maybe if they would have waited for Mugen. As brash and uncouth as he was, he had a way of knowing things. It was like he had a sixth sense. Or maybe it was because deep down, Mugen was just as vile as the men they were up against.

The dynamite placed around the opening of the particular tunnel they were in went hand in hand with what Mugen said they should do- just bring the whole thing down. But that wasn't how they did things in the Kawara clan. The amount of men crowding the opening told Ishimatsu and Kawara that they weren't being underestimated. That if the dynamite didn't work, they would go in themselves and stain the cave floors red.

"Sousuke Kawara, I presume?" With a kiseru pipe in his mouth, the man exhaled, clouding his face momentarily.

Letting out a shaky breath from his nose, Sousuke stood tall, just like Ishimatsu. With one hand on the hilt of his sword, the other one was relaxed by his side. Kawara's eyes fell on the man that was breathing smoke like a dragon, but he looked like anything but. He was a slender man, short in height and already balding. Lines ran along his forehead and out from his eyes which were stern and cold. Despite how plain and simple he looked, his eyes were in a league of their own- they showed what kind of beast was within.

"Hisayuki Machii."

Smirking, the man smiled, releasing smoke from the cracks and holes between his teeth. "I've been expecting you."

* * *

The floor boards creaked beneath his feet as he walked further along in the Inn. Everyone seemed to be gone, just like he expected. It had been a long time waiting. A long time wondering, but now the time finally came. He stopped and fit the tips of his fingers in the groove of the door. With a swift movement, he opened the door. His stern eyes stared into the dark empty room. She was gone.

* * *

Stopping everything, Fuu listened.

Her heart pounded against her chest so hard that she swallowed hoping it wouldn't leap up and out of her. She could hear footsteps above.

Taking a deep breath, she adjusted the bag that kept slipping off of her shoulder. With her body flat against the ground, Fuu put one arm out in front of the other, wiggling herself further along the cold ground. She didn't dare bring a lantern or any source of light with her. She was hoping that if she just continued straight, she would eventually find an opening and she would be able to get out of here. The ground under the Inn wasn't wet like she thought, even though it was raised off the ground, the "crawl space" seemed to be closed on all sides. It was still tight, she couldn't even go up to her knees or else she would knock her head on a support beam. Every now and then she could feel her elbows and knees knock against a post , making her adjust herself in the dark. She tried not to think about any bugs or insects, or even animals that might have burrowed their way underneath.

The thoughts of a centipede or mouse brushing against her gave her the chills, but she was taking control. Everyone was excluding her. Everyone was deciding her life. No one decided what her life was going to be like or how it was going to happen- half the time she didn't even know what she was going to do. But it was always her choice. And she would be damned if someone other than her was going to decide her life-her fate.

If someone was following them, then why would they be so stupid as to leave her alone. She knew as much that her warrant wanted her alive, so being alone like that was just asking for trouble. So there was no way that she was just going to sit still and do nothing- it wasn't in her to do that.

Digging her toes into the soil, she pushed herself forward more with the help of her slender arms. A chill tickled the back of her neck and her ear. She fastened her hair up with her jade adorned hair stick, not caring about the marks that were left on her skin anymore- this was about convenience. Looking to the side, her face could feel it too- a cool breeze that went with the howl outside

 _'A exit!'_

Slowly adjusting herself, she managed to turn herself to where the breeze was coming from. As it grew colder and stronger, her arms, stomach and the entirety of what was dragging on the ground became wet and surely muddy. Pushing forwards more, she could feel her body settle in a decent size puddle just as her face reached the opening. The air was crisp and stung her nose when she finally breathed in. Sticking one arm out, she stretched it out along the enclosure, pushing her shoulder out. Eventually she wiggled her head through and then her other arm. Flopping her body, bit by bit she finally emerged from the muddy hole. Trying to stand up, she stumbled. Bending at the knees she steadied herself and she bounced her bag back onto her shoulder. Eyes still down in front of her; large, feet stepped into view.

It felt like the air that kept her body alive was choking her. Even her body trembled and reacted before she looked up to see his face.

"Hello, little mouse..."

She wanted to run, she wanted to do whatever she could to distance herself from him. But her body wouldn't move. Even though her eyes saw what was happening, and her mind knew it was coming- she couldn't avoid the large fist that pressed itself into her stomach, and pressed her consciousness into darkness. She couldn't help but think of the footsteps that were above her, and what kind of fate would have been waiting for her if she would have stayed still.

 _'Argh...it hurts...it hurts to breathe.'_

 _Taking in one large inhale, it was like she snapped what ever elastic was wrapped around her. She gasped at the sensation but, the pain was still there. The sunflowers around her bent towards her and they seemed to be getting shorter. No longer did they tower beyond her sights, and no longer were they crisp and yellow. The green stalks were browning, bending as if they had an unbearable weight on top. The once crisp yellow mane that surrounded the tops were beginning to fade, and they curled in before scattering to the infinite white beneath her feet._

 _'What's happening? Why are you dying?!" Turning herself about in a small circle, she reached out to the nearest flowers. She wanted to hold them up. She wanted to support them. She wanted them to keep her covered. To keep her hidden._ _'No! Don't let him see me! He'll find me! Stop!'_ _Holding up the center of a flower, it broke within her tiny fingers and fell out like sand in an hour glass. Looking around again, she couldn't remember which way she came. Where was she going again? Why was she even here?_ _Clasping the top folds of her kimono, she couldn't help but squeeze with all her might. Clenching her eyes, she could feel the gaze of the wide open world around her staring._

 _She wanted to fall down like the flowers that were beyond her reach and sight._

 _She wanted to fall for eternity just like them._

 _She wanted out._

 _'That's right..I was following-" Opening her eyes, the red string was still pulled tight in front of her. "Momo-san." The beady eyes stared up at her. And nimbly and playfully, the grey squirrel jumped and hopped on the string in a circle until it ran back out into the still dying flowers. Staying still wasn't going to do her any good. Firmly grabbing a drooping flower, Fuu ripped it down and let it go. Where did all of her resolve go to? She wasn't just going to sit here, just like she decided not to stay in that room. Flowers weren't going to protect her. Flowers had a tendancy to wilt and die out of season. Their strength, their beauty, were a temporary thing._

 _Running as fast as she could, it felt like her feet finally had a grip. No longer did her legs flail around like she was running in water. Her body, no longer weightlessly drifting. She could feel it. She could feel the wind from her force brush against her skin and her hair._ _'Faster..Faster, Fuu!' Pushing past the ache of her breathing, the red string began to slack and loop down at her side. Momo's four little legs weren't able to keep up speed. Jumping up and sticking out her legs and arms, Momo's skin flaps caught the breeze which projected her backwards and onto Fuu._

 _The flowers behind her fell the instant she past them, leaving a falling carpet behind her._

 _"Do you hear that Momo?"_

 _It felt like she had been in silence for so long, and she couldn't see it, but her ears could hear it clear as day. For so long, it had just been her in the vast white, only the sound of her breathing, and the sound of her heart beating._

 _With one last final stride, and with all her might, Fuu burst out from the dying field of flowers. Having no choice but to squeeze her eyes shut, she was blinded by a light._

Eyes bursting open, the pain on her abdomen was far worse than in her dream. Every breath, in and out, hurt more than the last. With a shaky and unsteady hand she held onto her side, which hurt even more. Her common sense told her she had a broken rib or two, but she didn't know for sure. 'Hn? Where?' Looking from the ceiling above, she looked to the side. The wall was covered in different pelts and furs. All of which were of different sizes, colours, and species. It all seemed, familiar? The room itself was barely illuminated, but enough that she could make out details. Placing her arm down at her side, her exposed forearm, and hand was cradled by a soft fur. Hoisting herself up slowly, she stared at the fur covered wall.

The feeling. The smell. This is where she spent her last, and _first_ night with Mugen.

Finally sitting up, the pain was finally subsiding. It still hurt, but it was bearable. What concerned her the most was the person sitting in front of the door- watching her.

Slowly turning to look at him, every detail was being etched into her mind. Her body started to ache all over again. The bruises that had long healed and disappeared felt like they were fresh. His lingering touch still had a hold of her.

Even though he was sitting, he was impossibly large and imposing. His body was clothed in a dark material, making him blend in well with the lingering shadows from his lantern. His legs were crossed with his knees spanning out what she figured was more than two of her arm lengths. His sword was perched between his crossed legs and he was holding it, twirling it in its sheath with a smirk on his face. His face was almost exactly the same except for what seemed to be a overly large eye patch that not only covered his right eye, but extended up to his forehead, down his cheek bone and even curved around to his ear. The only part of the right half of his face that was showing was part of his nose, his mouth and his jaw that was still covered with thick facial hair.

And his left eye, scorning with enough intensity to make up for the absence of his right-tore right into her.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, she had no flowers to hide behind now. She had no furry companion to buy her time, or to send for help. For one of the first times, she was utterly and entirely, on her own. "Buta.."

* * *

The steel under his getas were silent as he ran on the wet and muddy road. There was no clang, or clomp of stone or rock. It was a squelch and a splash under his feet with every stride. The scratch on his arm made him keep her words in mind, but it was too vague. Why did he feel so damn compelled to listen? He might be wasting his time, maybe she was lying, or maybe it was a trap. But something inside him told him to keep looking.

 _'Another opening, behind...go underground.'_

Jumping off from the muddy road, Mugen vaulted over bushes and the tall grass. He could see the large "mound" that was the opening to the cave, but he sure as hell couldn't see another opening. Running further into the thicket, heavy wet leafs slapped against him- swaying as he moved and sprinkling water to the ground. His eyes darted from place to place, looking for any kind of trail or track to follow. A fallen tree. A broken branch. Hell, even a blade of grass that looked out of place would do it. Everything seemed completely undisturbed, except for what he had done.

A hard gust of air came out his nose when a slight hum worked its way up from his feet, to the tips of his hair. Something was certainly happening in there, and he was missing out. Looking at the mound of the opening again, he ran in the opposite direction. Hoping that he would find it soon- and if not, he would just go in the front way like he had planned from the start.

With his blade out, he cut down any branches and greenery that was in his way. He didn't care if it dulled the blade, after today it would need a damn good sharpening anyway. With every cut made, he felt a burst of cool water from the settled rain hit him as it flew with the motions. The green and overgrown grass slowly turned into more rocky terrain. It became lumpy and uneven under his feet, but the grass still grew between everything, making it almost impossible to see where he was stepping. Large rocks formed around, with layers of moss and sprouts growing on top. Hopping up from the ground, Mugen used the large moss covered stones as guides. He jumped from one to another, getting different vantage points. But so far, nothing looked like a opening.

"Fuck!" Swinging his sword at nothing, saliva spurted from his mouth as he continued with the profanities. He was wasting precious time, he should have just gone in from the front. In and out. Just like he wanted. Because even though he had his own agenda, there was a certain dilemma itched at the back of his mind. Or rather, it was screaming at him.

It screamed at him to turn around. To go back, find her, and make sure she was okay. _'Damn it..'_ He knew there were only two possibilities on what was happening to her right now: 1. She left the damn Inn. 2. She stayed put like a damn moron. But there was one thing for sure, there were two people coming for her, and he sure as hell hoped it was the second person.

He hated it. He hated having to trust someone else, and as much as Mugen did trust him, there was no guarantee. There was no way that Mugen would really know what was happening right now unless he was there with her. But, he had no choice. He had already decided long ago that it had to be this way.

Stopping for a moment, Mugen let his arms go limp at his side, and in turn the tip of his sword clanged against the particular boulder he was standing on. Taking in a deep breath, he looked over his shoulder.

He could smell it. The damn scent that stained clothes and minds, and left you with a headache of a lifetime- dynamite.

With one large leap, Mugen landed back on the uneven ground-twisting his ankle slightly. It was definitely coming from there. Pressing his nose closer to the larger formation of rocks, he could smell it seeping through the cracks. Raising an eyebrow, Mugen looked to a suspicious looking blanket of greenery that was draped down over the seam of the formation. Using the dull end of his blade, he moved it out of the way- revealing what he had been looking for. It was a small opening, because of his shoulders, he may have a hard time going straight in but he turned himself, there should be no problem.

Putting the sword back in his sheath, Mugen flattened himself against the one side, and shimmied in. He wasn't pressed tight, but this way his shoulders weren't knocking against the cold jagged "walls". Barely 5 feet in and the path dropped dramatically. Bracing himself he bent at the knees and his slick steel plated getas did all the work for him. He slid down the narrow and dark path into an unknown depth. When the path finally seemed to straighten out, Mugen was left in complete and utter darkness. He couldn't even see his hand in front of his face, but the smell of dynamite was stronger. Unsheathing his sword again, he shuffled his feet bit by bit, being weary of any other drops or holes. With his left hand still on the cave wall, it helped support him. Not being able to see what he was doing made it feel like he could trip or fall at any moment.

Slowly, bit by bit, he went further into the darkness. With the guidance of the wall, he knew when to turn, and the path slowly grew larger. He no longer had to worry about shuffling sideways or having his shoulders knock against the sides. Eventually, a soft light came to view. Orange and red hues blurred around a opening up ahead. Picking up his pace, he had to stop just as suddenly. The tips of his getas and feet hung over the small ledge on the other side of the man sized opening. Pebbles and stones fell from Mugen's movements. Looking down Mugen watched the stones fall, he counted the seconds to help figure out just exactly how high up from the bottom he was.

And from the looks of things, he was pretty damn high.

He had a view of the entire cavern, and no one seemed to notice him yet. The way it looked, somehow reminded him of somewhere he had been before. There was one large opening around, and it seemed there were different tunnels that went out in different directions- like a ant farm. Apart from where he was, there seemed to be only one way in and out- a large caged elevator system that was burrowed slightly in the stone/side. But most of all, the entire thing looked like a damn shit show. The entire area wreaked of dynamite, but there seemed to be almost no order to what was happening. Carts full of mostly rocks were scattered around stationed tables where some men seemed to break apart and inspect the findings- most of which didn't seem to shine bright like gold at all. But there was also some very familiar looking vases loaded up onto small carts- about 3 vases per cart to be exact.

But even though everything seemed hectic, there was a shit ton of people below, and from the sounds of it, even more in the various tunnels. The sounds of pick axes clanged and pinged all at different times, never leaving a break between for any sort of silence. It was easy to tell who was actually getting put to work and who was there to keep them in order. The guards walked around, yelling some dumb shit, but that wasn't what Mugen was paying attention to. There seemed to be a lot of men laying around, Mugen wasn't sure if they were all dead or if they were just sleeping.

 _'20...24...26.. Hmph...in and out, like I thought.'_ Holding onto the edge of the opening, Mugen's fingers were able to grip the slight lip. Leaning over, Mugen looked further down, letting himself over the edge more than what most people would be comfortable with. Smirking, Mugen saw how he would get down there.

"HEY, YOU! WHO THE HELL ARE YOU!?"

"Hah?" Quirking an eyebrow, Mugen knew very well that they were talking to him. The eyes and faces below all seemed to stare up at him. "As far as your concern..I'M THE GRIM REAPER!" Bending at the knees, Mugen jumped down. His stomach did a flop and everything was completely weightless as he dropped down. His hair, his haori, everything fluttered up as gravity weighed on him. About half way down, Mugen braced himself as he landed on a ledge that wasn't visible to him until he leaned out while he was scouting. He used his new footing to launch himself out and down- so he would land closer to the middle of the space.

The stunned "guards", pulled out whatever weapons they had- most of which consisted of guns and katanas. Overshooting his desired landing point, Mugen's getas crashed onto one of the tables that was being used to inspect the goods. The table cracked and broke under Mugen's weight and force- sending those surrounding it backwards. Finally, the sounds of pick axes died down as the commotion caught the attention of those near the entry of the tunnels. The echo of those working further in could still be heard.

Bobbing on the still breaking table, Mugen used the far end of the table that was flying up at him as a stepping stone. Flying directly into a sword wielding guard- whom of which collapsed under Mugen's blade. With one foot firmly planted on the man's chest, Mugen looked up around- waiting for the other's to surround. It would be easier for them to come to him, rather than running from place to place. From below, the place looked even larger, the tunnels literally spanned out in every direction along the circular shape of the cavern.

"You've got a death wish, son. Do you know who you're messing with?"

"Does it really look like I give a damn?" Turning completely to face the man talking to him, the other men seemed to be gathering alongside and behind him. All had either had a sword out, or had a gun aimed and ready. "I'm a bit disappointed that yer boss didn't tell ya I was coming. I was looking forward to seeing what you all had planned." Bringing his elbows back, Mugen pressed his shoulder blades together and back down. "But I guess this'll do!"

"FIRE!" The man in front cut his blade down in the air, and 6 men around him started firing at Mugen.

Running forward at them, Mugen kept his center of gravity low, leaning forward to the point he was almost running himself down into the ground. A ran as close as he could until he hit the table he had broke. Grabbing a large chunk as he ran, he tossed it at the group- covering a few of their lines of vision. The sounds of bullets burrowing into the cave walls, wood and clanging against metal apparatuses were temporary as Mugen closed the distance quickly.

Like a well practiced formation, those with guns backed up and were replaced with those wielding swords. With a quick vertical slash, the first (or actually, second), man fell. With a "ping" Mugen kicked up the now available blade and wielded it in his left hand. With both arms armed, Mugen was able to be on offense as he defended himself as well. For what seemed like the first time in forever, people were finally attacking him all at once. They didn't hesitate or wait for someone else to make a move before they did, all at once, from almost every direction, he had someone coming at him. With both arms out at his sides, his two blades clashed with others. Constant force and pushing kept them at his sides, if one slipped, so would he.

"ARRGH!" Coming at his front, was a third man.

Turning his arms up and back like a windmill, he forced the other's blades up and away from him just in time for him deflect the third oncoming blade with his left. Plunging his right blade into the gut and out the other side, Mugen quickly retracted it. Turning to his side and pivoting back, he kicked one foot into the air- blocking one of the blades once again with his geta. Twisting his upper body and bending at the knee, burst up, doing a barrel roll in the air- disarming the blade with the heels of his geta.

"FIRE!"

Another round of bullets came Mugen's way. Still spinning in the air, he could feel the force of a bullet pull on the loose leg of his shorts, tearing through the material. A flew clanged against his blades, vibrating his arms and sending a pang to his hands from absorbing most of the impact. Landing on his side, he quickly shifted back up onto one foot and knee, using the "borrowed" blade as a harpoon, he took out one of the gunmen.

Lunging back up, the sharp end of his blade barely made contact with the side of the man he had disarmed with his geta. Although the wound seemed to be shallow- it was enough to spurt blood out, bringing the man down and into the cross fire of one of the final bullets. Somehow during the movement, Mugen had distanced himself from the crowd once again. Standing back up, their attacks weren't coming with the same intensity as before.

"Heh.." Laughing to himself, Mugen could see it on their faces. He was in their heads, and it showed. "COME ON! IS THAT ALL YOU GOT!?"

"GO ON! GET HIM! THERE'S TWENTY OF YOU AND ONLY ONE OF HIM!"

"BRING IT ON!"

* * *

 **NON CONSENSUAL, YOU MAY WANT TO SKIP.**

Backing herself up, she knew it wouldn't do any good. There was only one way in and out of this place, and it was behind him. There wasn't even so much as a window for her to try to get to. Even though he was taking small steps towards her, it felt like he was running at her. He towered far higher than she remembered, staring down at her.

"I often wondered how your face would look once it was all healed..."

"Huh? That's funny...because I haven't thought of you once." Pursing up her lips, she spat at him, hitting as high up as she could, to which he only smirked.

"Still as fiesty as I remember.." Contiuing slowly towards her, he couldn't help the crooked smirk on his face. "I'll have fun breaking you."

Backing herself up more, she hit the end of the line. With her back pressed against the wall, she had no where else to go. Her only chance was getting on the other side of him and to that door. Last time, her entire body froze. And as much as she wanted to fight back, she couldn't. She bit her tongue and tried not to react at all- even though time and time again he told her to scream, to let it it all out. Using the wall to support her shaky legs, she slowly slid her back up until she was standing. Her hands flat against the wall, they stayed behind her rear, but bit by bit, her left arm got higher and higher, until it brushed against the soft fur of a hanging pelt on the adjacent wall.

"I'm not so fragile to be broken by someone as pathetic as you!"

Pulling down the pelt, Fuu burst off the wall, tossing the pelt over Buta's head. With large, quick, steps, she went around him. Hands stretched out in front of her, she flexed her palms out to push against the door. The rough lines of the door pressed against her skin, and the door started to creak open. _'JUST KEEP RUNNING FUU!'_ Her bare foot barely pressed against the wet ground, and her head was jerked back-stopping her completely.

With a large, hearty and soul crushing laugh, Buta yanked back on Fuu's hair- and tossed her back to the other end of the shack. Her body fell to the connection of the far wall and the floor- slamming her her back and side.

Trying to catch her breath, her body wouldn't take in air or let it out. Her eyes almost couldn't focus enough to see him toss something down on the floor and slam the door closed. Reaching out to her again, his hand easily wrapped around her small neck. Bit by bit, she was lifted up off the ground, barely able to scrape her toes against the ground.

"I'm sorry to say but, you won't be leaving this place." Bringing her up more, her small hands grabbed at his wrist and arm, trying to hold herself up. He could feel her neck tense and pulse as he gripped a bit more. The way her eyes widened and started to pool with tears, and the way her grunts and attempts at breathing were cut short were better than he imagined. Bringing his face down to hers, his beard scraped against her soft skin as his tongue ran up her cheek- cleaning up a tear that fell. "-at least not till I'm done with you."

Her vision started to speckle with little black dots, and just as she could feel her eyes begin to roll- he released his grip on her neck. Air rushed into her body as she crumbled to the floor, but she wasn't so lucky to catch her breath with ease. His large hand pressed itself to the back of her head- pressing the side of her face to the floor.

"Let's see how well you hold your tongue this time."

Her body jerked as his free hand forcefully pulled at her layers. Her palms pressed firmly on the ground next to her head as she tried to push herself up but he wasn't budging-his one arm was more powerful than her entire body. With another jerk, her body bobbed as the tight obi around her was tossed to the side. She wanted to scream at him, to object, but that was just what he wanted. Frantically, her eyes darted from place to place, looking for anything within arms reach that she could use- but there was only pelts.

His hand ran along her stomach and into the falling folds of her kimono. Curling himself over her body, his body was like a steel cage- giving her no freedom or room to move. With his large body he was able to keep most of his weight on his knees, so he was able to move his hands freely. Still pressing down on her head, his other hand brushed the skin on her sickened stomach. Curling her hands into fists, she stopped trying to push herself up- all it was doing was wasting energy.

"Softer than I remember." Running his hand lower, his hand cradled her pelvic bone, and slid down between her thighs.

Clenching her eyes, she knew what was about to happen. Her swollen lips ached and nerves pinched as two overly large fingers entered. Biting down on her lip, she tried not to make any sounds- it hurt. She still hadn't healed from what she and Mugen had done, and her body wasn't ready, and wasn't willing.

Laughing again, he swirled his fingers and felt her clench around him. Pulling his fingers out, he held them up. "So you did lay with another man." Feeling the texture on his fingers, he strung it out and played with it. "I must admit, I was willing to look past those marks on your neck, I am disappointed. But, if you're good, I'll forgive you."

"You sick bastard!" Clenching her teeth, she wanted to spit at him again but under his hold, she wasn't able to move her head.

Flipping the kimono up over her back, it draped down one side. Revealing everything below her waist. "I'm just a man that knows what he wants." Removing his hand from her head, he grabbed onto her hips with a vice like grip. "-And I always get what I want."

With one forceful push, she felt like she was ripping all over again. Only this time, there was no hesitation or care behind the act. Her mouth burst open, spraying pent up saliva out beside her face as she unleashed a pained gasp. Her body bounced further ahead on the floor and then she was mercilessly slammed back in by the hands on her hips. His body slammed and met hers part way back. His speed wasn't fast, but each time she was slammed back it was hard and without restraint.

Her brows knit together as much as possible, her nails dug into the floor boards and she tried to steady herself. Clenching her jaw again, she couldn't help the grunts and slight squeals that made it past her resolve. It hurt far more than the blade that impaled her ever did. Every time he pushed in, her insides pinched- sending jolts of pain up through her stomach and around her sides. Trying to bring a leg forward, she attempted at pulling herself away in a crawl- but his hands only gripped tighter to the point that it also hurt. Bringing her left arm around to cradle her head, she reached back with her right- digging her nails into his closest wrist.

"-You little!" Pulling his "clawed" hand back, he ceased all movement but remained inside her.

Feeling his grip loosen and one hand pull away, she quickly pulled herself forward, removing him from her and donkey kicked back. She wasn't sure what part of him she hit, but she quickly turned onto her back and bent her knees towards her chest for another kick if he came closer. She knew there was no way she could out power him- so at least she could put up one hell of a fight. "-Like I'm going to let you do whatever you want! OVER MY DEAD BODY!" Kicking at him again, he deflected her legs like they were nothing but leafs in the wind, and he was back on top of her.

"You're starting to make me angry, girl!" Holding back most of his strength, his large fist connected with her jaw.

Her head jerked to the side, and she could taste her own blood pooling from a cut on her lip. Grimacing, a ache was already growing in her head- but the pain was nothing compared to what she had already felt. Turning her head back to him, she spat blood onto his face- splattering on his skin and beard like a flick of a paint brush.

Grunting, he hooked her legs and brought her back in, but she wasn't done fighting. Even though he was on top of her, his weight didn't pin her down so she flailed. She flopped her body around like a fish out of water. She kicked her legs which he was trying to steady and tried to sit up while swinging at his face. "LET GO OF ME!" With the swing of her left arm, her fingers caught the large eye patch that covered part of Buta's face. Eyes widening, her body froze at what layed beneath.

Almost all of the skin on the right side of his face, all the way to his ear was pulled tight and pink with the look of glossed leather. His hair line around the side of his head and ear was almost non existent, and the skin on his cheek was caved in, making his cheek bone stick out. But it wasn't just the burned leather look of his skin that made her shudder- it was his right eye. No eyelid remained, making his eye as round as the full moon. Dozens of blood vessels stained the white of his eye and in place of his eyebrow was bubbled textured skin.

Letting go of her legs, he gripped her shoulders- digging the tips of his digits into her skin. His mouth curled up into a smile and he let out a shrill, maniacal laugh. His left eye became as round as his right, and his pupils contracted into nothing more than dots. "YOU! YOU DID THIS TO ME! LOOK AT MY FACE!"

Wincing at all the pain on her shoulders, she couldn't look away from his crazed face. _'He's gone mad!'_

Pushing himself into her, her back fell to the floor and he hovered on top of her. "I change my mind, little mouse. When I'm done, I'm doing to you, what you did to me!" Finding his positioning again, he plunged in, not wasting anytime bouncing her body off his again and again. "I'll burn you, and see if your face is still pretty afterwards!"

Clenching her jaw, and keeping her lips tightly pressed together, she dared not make another sound. Instead she continued to bat, swat, push, and hit at him.

Thrusting like his life depended on it, he could feel himself nearing the end, but he wasn't satisfied. "WHY WON'T YOU SCREAM!?" Grabbing her by the wrists, he pressed them up over her head and he continued to thrust himself.

"-Because" Looking past his large frame, she looked back at him for just a moment. "-You're already a dead man." Closing her hands into fists, she turned her head the moment she heard the crisp, sheen, sound of a blade being unsheathed-and then there was a splatter on her exposed skin. His movements had ceased and his grip on her wrists loosened. Cracking an eye, she looked at him. His face still hovered over hers, but she could feel the continuous flow falling onto her stomach from his.

In one erratic movement, Buta paid no mind to the blade that pierced through his back to his stomach, and he swung his right elbow back- spinning himself around to face his foe. The blade had pulled out and was removed from his body- but it still pointed at Buta, ready for his next move.

"Who the hell are you!?" With one hand clenching his stomach, Buta placed one foot on the floor and kept one knee down. Somehow, the attack brought him back to his "senses". His brows were knit tightly together as he was trying to keep from losing himself.

Rolling herself away from Buta, she clenched her kimono layers closed when she got as far from Buta as she could (which wasn't as far as she would have liked). Spitting out some of the pooled blood from her mouth, she wiped her chin from anything that had dripped. Her heart, and adrenaline were pumping to the point she didn't feel any of the pain anymore.

"Sorry I'm late, Fuu."

Muscle by muscle, she felt her face relax, and her mouth naturally hung open slightly. Turning her head the slightest bit, her heart seemed to recognize the voice far before her mind could process it. Tall, long black hair pulled back, blue and dark grey clothing, and most importantly, glasses.

"J-Jin?!"

With a nod of his head, Jin's eyes stayed focused on the man in front of him. Otherwise, he would be enjoying the reunion. He was already regretful because he was late, which caused Fuu to suffer. He was too late getting to her room, when he opened the door, she was already gone. At first he thought he might have seen Mugen's signal wrong: 'West, 8th room.', but the empty plates and trays suggested otherwise. There were many things about Fuu he would never forget, and one of them being her appetite. If it wasn't for the loose floor board he stepped on, he would have looked in more rooms just to be safe. But something about the creaking under his foot told him she left on her own accord. So he followed the best he could. Finding her point of exit from a small hole on the side of the foundation of the Inn, to the large footprints that left town. But, the real trouble was when he made it to the trees- someone was already there, waiting for him.

Mugen wasn't normally one for preparation, but Jin was grateful for the information he had given. He knew that someone had been following them for quite sometime, and that there would be a possibility that a set of eyes would be on Fuu at all times. They put up quite the fight, but overall, it didn't last longer than a few minutes. It was losing sight of the tracks that delayed him more than anything. The trees, the rocks and the hot springs showed no sign of travellers, especially in the dark. It wasn't until he heard shouting: _'-YOU DID THIS TO ME! LOOK AT MY FACE!',_ that he knew where to go.

"Get out, Fuu."

"You're not going anywhere!" Releasing his stomach, Buta reached out with his blood soaked hand but was stopped when Jin stepped further with his katana.

Quickly getting up, Fuu clenched her kimono closed. Sticking as close to the pelt covered wall as she could, she scooted away from Buta, and behind Jin. Swishing the blood and saliva in her mouth, she spit it out on the floor. She was eternally grateful for Jin's appearance- once again she had been saved. Sliding her foot to the side, she wanted to leave and let Jin end this quickly, but something knocked against the side of her foot. Looking down, it was her hair stick. Earlier, when she tried to escape and Buta stopped her, she forgot she had been wearing it. He must have pulled it out and tossed it down.

Bending down, she picked it up and firmly held it in her hand. Slowly rising back to stand, her eyes caught the flickering light of the lantern.

"Hurry, Fuu, now." Gripping his sword, Jin was ready to end it as soon as she left. The man in question was already nearing the end- blood continued to pool from his body, and he was beginning to waver from the blood loss. He made a promise to Mugen, and he had full intentions on keeping it.

"Jin-" Grabbing him by the shoulder, he was hard to move but eventually, Jin finally budged-standing slightly behind her but with his blade ready. Taking Jin's place, Fuu looked down at Buta. His face remained as firm as ever, but she could see the sweat drip form his brow and down his paling face. Holding the wooden lantern with multiple candles on the inside, she kicked up some of the pelts that she and Mugen had left on the floor. The pelts landed partially on Buta and the floor next to him. "You did this to yourself."

"You bitch-" His body shook ferociously, making him cough up blood. His vision was beginning to blur, blending in the two frames in front of with with the flickering light.

"-Burn in hell." Tossing the lantern down at him, it hit his arm and rolled down onto the pelts- knocking over the candles. The dry skins, and soft furs quickly ignited- lighting up the small shack more than the candles ever could.

He could feel the heat, he could feel it burn his clothes, and his skin. The same sweltering, blistering, heat that he was trapped in before- was consuming him again. But as much as he wanted to move, as much as he wanted to pull her into the flames with him- his body couldn't do it. It was like the weight of every sin he ever committed was weighing down on him- keeping him from committing just one more.

The flames quickly began to spread to the other furs, and the dried, old wood of the interior- but she stood still. Watching the monster light up. With her back tall, and eyes unwavering, she watched as the large body finally collapsed to the side- with the wide full moon eyes staring back, completely lifeless.

"Fuu, we need to go." Putting his katana back into its sheath, Jin backed up from the ferocious flames that were beginning to heat his face beyond comfort.

But she didn't move, or react. She just stood there, staring at the frame within the flames. Grabbing her by the arm, Jin pulled her out. The further they got, the colder their bodies became-no longer within reach of the flames, she still stared at the smoking shack. Adjusting his glasses, there was one more problem he had to solve. Seeing as though she was distracted, he quietly left to retrieve what he needed. When he finally came back, the shack was fully in flames despite the wet exterior. The light of the flames bounced off Fuu's wide watching eyes.

"Use this to fix yourself." Standing slightly behind her, Jin held out a long thin "obi". It was black, and unknowing to the dark surroundings, slightly saturated with blood. With the light of the shack, he easily found the body he had left behind before finding Fuu- to which he was grateful.

"Oh-" Blinking a few times, Fuu finally turned away from the burning shack, confused at what Jin was offering her and why. Turning her body away from the flames, Jin adverted his gaze and the cold night air bit at her. "OH!" Snatching the tie, she turned herself and quickly wrapped herself in her kimono and tied it securely.

"Are you alright?"

"-How did you know where to find me? Or that we were in Toi?" Shaking her head she held out her arms and waved her hands in a similar manner to her head. "Wait, we need to hurry!" Running past Jin, she paid no mind to the darkness as she made her way back to the road.

Easily keeping pace, Jin emerged behind Fuu and out from the trees. "Where do you intend to go?"

The slapping of her bare feet against the wet road came to a halt as she looked over her shoulder at him. And it was as if nothing had ever happened to her, with a smile on her face, and eyes full of resolve. "Say, Jin, can you promise me something?"

* * *

His shoulder rose and lowered with every heavy breath, slowly stepping towards the last one. A had a few new cuts and grazes, but that was because of their numbers and not their skills. At this point he could no longer hear the sound of the pick axes picking away at the cave walls. There were no more gun shots echoing through the cavern or small dynamite blasts going off in hopes of uncovering more glittering wealth. His fallen opponents laid criss cross over one another, and few had scattered around due to his antics.

Looking over to the worn down, dirty, workers; Mugen was at a loss on what to do with them. Kawara and Ishimatsu made it clear that they were not to harm any civilians. But who was to say who signed up for this willingly, knowing fully what was happening and who was forced here? Often enough, the faces of the sinners can turn to that of the ignorant.

Bending down, Mugen wiped his blade off on the clothed back of a still warm corpse. The silent onlookers stood still, unsure of their own fate at this point.

 _Would this man kill them too?_

 _Were they allowed to leave?_

 _What of the gold?_

Stepping around, over, and sometimes on the bodies, Mugen made his way to the stuff that had caught his eyes when he first arrived. After stuffing his pockets full he felt the weight. It would drag him down and be a pain in the ass while moving, but hell, he was willing to take that chance. He looked at the other materials around him, and he set up what he felt was necessary for the size of the cavern. Walking along like nothing ever happened, Mugen slid open the elevator and stepped inside.

"I would get the hell outta here if I were you." With a smirk, Mugen pulled the lever on the inside that worked the weights and pullers. He slowly began his decent up into the next unknown level of the cave- leaving the other men in a panic.

 _*At the same time, else where in the cave*_

The katana clanked and pinged as it fell against the cave floor. His right arm completely numb and without power, Kawara clutched it with his left. The blood from his upper arm spurted and leaked through the lines of his fingers. The red trail ran down his limp arm and dripped to the ground below. Grimacing, he set one foot behind him, trying not to break his stance despite being disarmed.

Most of his men had already fallen due to the trap Machii set up. Their guns easily snipped at them one by one before they even had a chance to attack- and those that did manage to get up close, were quickly cut down by a line of swordsmen that stood behind the front line. Ishimatsu and a few other's were still standing strong but their numbers had fallen to just 6- where as Machii easily had more than a dozen left, not including Machii himself.

"I must say, Kawara, I was expecting more of a fight." Tipping his kiseru pipe upside down, Machii emptied the ashes. He waved around his small pistol in his other hand like it was nothing more than an accessory. "But I suppose that's what you get when a rat tries to run with the big dogs." Finally looking over at one of the men that had just been standing there, Machii nodded his head. "I'm tired of this, light it."

"But sir, our men are still-"

 **BANG**

Without any hesitation, Machii shot his subordinate, and then quickly pointed the pistol back at Kawara who was just inches away from reaching his blade with his left hand.

 **BANG**

"KAWARA!" In a spur of panic, Ishimatsu managed to take down two of the three men that had grouped together against him.

Buckling down to his one knee, Kawara kept one foot grounded. He thought for sure the bullet had hit him, but there was no new pain or wound. His body reacted before he could process that he didn't actually get hit, but the disturbed ground and hole by his sword told him that Machii wouldn't miss a second time. "I'm fine, Ishimatsu!"

"rrrrRRRHHHYAAAA!"

Catching almost everyone's attention, they were all caught off guard when Mugen burst out from the main tunnel to them. Mugen didn't know who was who, but if they pointed a gun or sword at them, he took them down. During the confusion, Kawara picked up his sword and managed to stand again- his right arm dangled at his side and swayed as he tried to balance himself. Ishimatsu used his large size to over power the last man that stood before him and sent him flying into the "crowd" where Mugen was.

"He finally showed up." Smirking, Ishimatsu could feel himself getting fired up all over again.

As swift as a professionally trained samurai, Mugen cut through 3 or 4 men before those with guns had backed up to the main tunnel and started firing- without any consideration to any other's (except for Machii). Ishimatsu joined in, clashing his blades against other's- making the sharp sound of metal on metal. As much as Kawara wanted to be on the offense, in his current state, all he could do was try to defend himself as an enemy turned their attention to him.

"All these damn guns are starting to piss me off!" Deflectig a blade with a windmill style arm swoop, Mugen bashed his forehead against a man before sending him back into the blade of one of his "comrades".

Letting out a loud laugh, it overpowered the sound of guns firing, and the clashing of swords. "JUST WONDERFUL!" Sticking his gun back into his waist band, he stole the attention from Mugen. Those in battle stopped with their swords pressed together-shaking during their strong hold. "I was worried that Yatsuha had finished you, I'm glad to see she didn't!"

 _'What the..'_ Adjusting his sword, Mugen and his openants blade clanged together again in another battle of holding position. _'-he sent her in hoping she'd die?'_ Kicking with his long legs, Mugen forced his opponent back but unfortunately he was a bit late on swinging his sword so he came back at him as well as another. "SHE PUT UP A BETTER FIGHT THAN THOSE BASTARDS BELOW!"

"You've already been there?" In a similar manner to Mugen, Ishimatsu deflected a blade and quickly made his way to Mugen, so the two of them were back to back. "Did you finish them?"

"Heh..yea." With his back to Ishimatsu, the two of them defended on all sides. "-In and out. Like I said, but we gotta hurry this up."

"What do you mean?" Grunting through his words, their adversaries weren't letting up.

"Don't ask stupid questions-" Spinning himself, Mugen cut the shins of men who were attempting to surround him-dropping them all like flies. "-we got a few minutes."

Reaching into the top folds of his yukata, Machii pulled out three small spheres with wicks. Taking out the pipe from his mouth, he tipped the wicks one by one into the chamber until they ignited.

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" Finally getting use to his left arm, Kawara ran past his opponent who was still in the process of collapsing. "Ishimatsu, look out!" Running at Machii, he was too far to make it in time and the three spheres were tossed into the battling numbers. Smoke quickly filled the tunnel, bringing tears to everyone's eyes, and burning their nostrils. Covering his nose and mouth with his left sleeve, Kawara continued his path to where Machii should have been. It was hard to see past the tears and smoke but he couldn't just stand there when Ishimatsu, Mugen and the other's continued to fight. He wasn't the only one with injuries and he wouldn't be the last.

The smoke seemed to settle in an unmoving cloud. Moving on, Kawara could hear gun shots, coughing, and the continuous clang of swords. Reaching the end "fork" of the tunnel (that branched from the main one and down their right path and to the left), Kawara looked down and around, trying to figure out where Machii had gone. The smoke was slowly beginning to creep into the other two tunnels, making a slight veil in the air- but it wasn't concentrated enough to cover everything. However, out from the concentrated smoke, the end of a gun barrel pointed at the back of his head.

Coughing again and again, Mugen's back pressed against Ishimatsu's as their enemies disappeared into the thick smoke. Their eyes burned to the point that it hurt to keep them open, and even in the few seconds that they did dare to close their eyes, the pain didn't go away. The smoke bombs were thrown directly at them, so they were caught in the worst of it.

"God damn it.." Clenching his jaw, Mugen could feel Ishimatsu tense behind him.

At any moment, from almost any angle, an attack could come- not to mention the possibility of bullets. Forced to take a step forward, Mugen's body was pushed by Ishimatsu's, who seemed to have found himself an opponent. It wasn't but a second until someone else emerged out from the smoke, with their blade overhead in hopes of chopping him up like a piece of fire wood. Momentarily pulling himself from Ishimatsu, Mugen swiftly cut the air as straight as the horizon. His opponent seemed to freeze as bit by bit, the slash across their stomach opened and red sprayed out like a fine mist-clinging to Mugens face. Stepping back, Ishimatsu was no longer there- but he could hear swords sliding on one another and hefty grunts.

Out a head, Mugen could slowly see a silhouette form in the thick smoke. It was far too lean to be Ishimatsu, and it was coming right at him Squinting his eyes, the burning from the smoke was almost unbearable-his tears and shadowed vision blurred the silhouette more, but if he did this quickly he wouldn't get caught with his eyes closed. Bending at the knees, Mugen leaned forward as he dashed forwards with his impossible speed.

"RRRHHYAA!" The tip of his sword dug into the ground as he brought it down to his side and then back up in an upward diagonal fashion. He expected to be met with the same red mist that almost as before- but instead, he felt resistance. His sword clanged against another as his attack was blocked. The vibration from the impact and sudden stop shook his arms. Quickly, he and the other body parted themselves and their swords clanged again, and again. Each attack happening faster than the other- but neither one of them backing down. "Fuck, just let me kill you!"

"Mugen-"

"SHUTUP, FOUR EYES!" Skidding back from another delfection, Mugen lunged himself forward again. The tears in his eyes from the smoke finally became too much as they streamed out the corners of his eyes. _'Wait...'_ Already in the process of bringing his sword down, their swords clanged one last time, before Mugen finally allowed himself to blink a few times. The relief on his eyes was instant, but every time he opened them up again, the stinging grew worse. "-Why the fuck are you here?"

The two men eased their blades and arms, still holding them out in case a real enemy emerged. Standing up straight, the stoic faced man adjusted his glasses that hid his eyes that were suffering the same as Mugen's.

"Wait, if you're here than that means." Looking past Jin, Mugen tried to see anything in the smoke but it was almost impossible. "-Where the hell is she?! Did you leave her alone?! I thought we-"

"She's here, hiding outside. She ran here herself to help, but I reasoned with her for me to come in her place."

"Fuck." Rubbing his eyes, Mugen could feel the dirt, sweat and blood smear as he tried to ease the pain. "-There's no reasoning with her. God damn it!" Something washed over him. It flipped his stomach, and made his palms sweaty. It weighed on him like a million pounds. Grabbing Jin by the shoulder, Mugen pushed past him. He knew her too well to know that she wouldn't just sit down and wait. She was going to come running in and she was going to get her skinny ass into some sort of trouble. She was never able to learn her place and just accept it. She always had to take things ten steps further.

"Mugen-" With one swift block and a lunge of his sword, Jin stopped an oncoming attack from within the smoke.

"Why the hell didn't you stop her?! There's dynamite all over the damn place!" Dodging another oncoming attack, Mugen didn't use his sword. Instead he stepped to the side and grabbed the guy by his shoulder- tossing him straight at Jin to let him deal with it. All while Mugen ran into the direction in which Jin had emerged from. Surely Jin and Ishimatsu could handle whoever was left, which shouldn't be a lot considering how many he had already taken down and how many were out before he showed up.

 **BANG**

There are moments in a person's life, when without being told, or without seeing, they know something happened. The type of thing that sinks your heart into the deepest pit of your stomach, where it clenches and holds like it's trying to burst it like a cheap balloon. This bang, this gun shot that echoed louder than all the other's, resonated differently in the cave and in Mugen.

The recoil, the "ping" the bullet made when it hit the cave walls or the ground didn't follow the initial bang. **Bang** , that's all it was. The impact was muffled; suffocated by the soft tissue it lodged into.

His feet were already moving to where the echo had came from,. The smoke in his eyes slowly started to dissipate and break apart like clouds after a storm. The air became less suffocating, but it didn't help the hitch in his breath, nor the pit that his heart had sank into. The sting in his eyes quickly turned to red.

Standing there, Kawara's ears rang as everything else around him was like white noise. He didn't see the pistol, but it shot so close to him that all the other sounds had been shut out, leaving him with the feeling of cotton in his ears. Hunching down from the pain shooting through his head, he quickly turned around, hoping that he wouldn't be face to face with the end of a barrel. He could hear yelling, but the ringing in his ears washed away their voices. Frame by frame, his eyes adjusted through the thinning smoke.

Machii stood there, struggling and clearly yelling- his voice got louder and louder, but Kawara still couldn't make out the words. Machii's brought his left arm back with a firm, closed fist and swung it down two times before Kawara realised there was a brightly clothed body between he and Machii. The small frame, clothed in pink that was blotted with red; some was fresh, and some was already beginning to dry down to a brown hue.

 _"OFF-"_

 _'Huh?..'_ Shaking his head, the disorientation was beginning to wear away. _'Fuu?'_

 _'NOW, SOUSUKE!'_

Like someone turned on the volume, the sounds and voices were almost perfectly clear. They were paired with a constant, high pitch ring but at least he could make out individual sounds.

Machii let out a cry as Fuu bit down on his wrist. Her arms were wrapped around Machii's right arm and she pressed her body close- keeping him from being able to move it. Machii still had a firm grip on the gun, but his once swinging left arm was now trying to pry the small girl off him.

"Sousuke!" Her voice was muffled by the flesh she had in her mouth- her jaw remained rigid as she never stopped biting Machii.

Correcting weak left handed grip on his blade, Sousuke had to wait for an opening. He didn't want to make the mistake of hitting Fuu, but he also didn't want to let the opportunity she gave him go to waste. _'NOW!"_ Seeing the opening, Machii had turned shoulders and upper body right, pulling Fuu in the same direction and leaving his left side exposed. He could feel the smoke, and air slice as his blade went forward in a straight and narrow line. The tip, was going directly to Machii's left pectoral, but the sheen sound of blade on blade came instead of that of torn flesh. Having his blade deflected up and away from Machii- followed with a firm, teeth shattering punch to his chin and right jaw line.

Flying off to the left, Sousuke lost grip of his sword and his shoulder collided with the cave wall before sliding down to his rear. Blood filled his mouth as he spit out pieces of a broken tooth (or three). Wiping away the blood stained saliva from his chin, Sousuke's angered eyes instantly looked for the one who stopped him. Who kept him from piercing Machii, and from essentially ending it all. Sousuke's narrowed eyes and pumping blood quickly cooled and rushed for a different reason.

Like predator and prey, Sousuke crumpled under the immense pressure.

The darkened, blood lust enraged eyes drilled down at him. Even though he wasn't standing directly over him, Kawara would feel it. The pressure, the intimidation, the feeling of destruction; the aura of a monster.

 _'Mugen..'_ He couldn't even say his name out loud, or move. Even if he tried, he was sure his legs would give out from under him. Even though the real enemy was right there. Even though Fuu was struggling to give them an opening. Mugen's attention was on him. _'No..that's not it.._ ' Even though it felt like minutes had passed, Kawara could finally feel his rear settle fully on the ground. Mugen's blade, and his body were still in motion with his blade out in place of where his just was. Fuu, was still in the process of being jostled to the side and Machii's eyes were only just turning to focus in on the incoming attack.

Mugen's eyes, that were watching Kawara from the side, turned away from him as his met Machii's. He wielded his blade in his left hand, and his right, that had crossed under and up at Sousuke had firm grip around the barrel of the gun between the three bodies.

 **BANG**

Just like the last shot, there wasn't a "ping" or "clang" of the bullet hitting the cave, or the ground. It was silenced by the muscles of Mugen's inner thigh that it shot directly into.

"Mugen!" Finally releasing he sore jaw from Machii's wrist- she felt the shock of the force from the gun being fired through her head. Blood ran down from her temple from the repeated punches from Machii.

"Get that kid outta here, NOW!" Not bothering to look at her, he pushed his blade in more until almost all of it stuck out the other side.

"DON'T ACT LIKE I'M NOT HERE!" Despite the sword through his flesh, he seemed undaunted. He fought against the weight of the girl on his arm and the strength Mugen had on his gun. He had two bullets left in the chamber, and he was going to make sure he used them. The one that he had decided to use on the Kawara brat, had gone into that little girls shoulder instead, and now this bastard. This son of a bitch he should have ended a month ago, was thinking he was going to get to play hero by saving the girl.

"But what about you-"

"FUCK, FUU! GO! NOW!"

Reluctantly, she releaed her arms from Machii. Fuu allowed herself to watch Mugen for as long as she could until he was further than her peripheral vision stretched. Almost in a sliding fashion, Fuu was down on her knees next to the frozen Sousuke. His face was drained of almost all colour. His eyes slowly turned up to look at her as she draped his arm over her shoulder and stood him up.

"Let's go, Sousuke."

It felt like she was dragging him along, but his feet were slowly, and heavily moving along. They fled into the thickened smoke that merged where the three tunnels met. Her eyes watered from the smoke and panic set in when she saw five figures coming out to the "intersection" on her left. She had no weapons on her, and neither did Souske. "We have to run Sousuke."

"A man...doesn't run." Grunting, Sousuke tried to stand himself up but his legs and mind were still under the influence of Mugen's monstrous aura.

"Sou-"

"Sousuke, Fuu."

The sets of hurried feet stopped as they met up in the intersection. Ishimatsu, Jin, and three other injured men huffed and coughed as Fuu allowed herself to relax. Ishimatsu was supporting two men, one on each side with their arms draped over his large broad shoulders. The other man stood behind Jin, clutching his arm and blood running down from his forehead- covering his left eye completely.

"Jin! Mugen is still over there." Looking over her shoulder to where she and Sousuke had came from it was eerily quiet. There was no clanging of blades, or shots from pistols. They couldn't even hear any words being exchanged.

"Sousuke, where's Machii?"

Hesitating, Sousuke didn't want to admit that he failed. He had hesitated, he turned his back and he allowed someone to come between him and his enemy. "Mugen is dealing with him."

"Fuu you're bleeding!" Stepping forward, Jin went to remove Sousuke's arm from around her shoulders.

"Don't mind me! Go help Mugen before he-!"

 **BANG**

The gun shot echoed through the entire cave. It was followed by very distinct cracking and crumbling sounds. The undertone was that of quickly rushing water, but in reality, it was stone and rocks that were beginning to unsettle. Around them, the ground started to shake and vibrate, until an even louder orchastra of explosions and "bangs" went off. Almost all of them lost their footing. Fuu and Sousuke dropped, and Jin stumbled when he went to help them up.

"Shit! We need to go now!" Readjusting the two arms over his shoulders, Ishimatsu stood stronger with the two hurt men at his side. "Mugen planned something without telling us. He said he only had a few minutes when he showed up. And I think that time is up."

All of them stood up and Fuu looped Kawara's arm off from around her shoulders and practically shoved him into Jin. "If you won't help him then I will!"

Turning to run, The ground around them shook more violently, and two very different hands clasped around her wrist before she turned. The ground worked against her, knocking her off balance but the two people holding her back kept her from falling and from running further in. Jin and Sousuke, tightened their grip on her, making her attempts at breaking free completely futile.

"LET ME GO!"

It was no use. At the same time, Jin and Sousuke pulled back on her. Over the vibrating ground and under the falling debris and rocks, she was pulled further and further from him. Her feet tripped and caught on one another as she refused to look away from the direction he was in. The smoke from the bombs Machii set off no longer reached where they were but the disturbed soil, dust and build up had taken its place in the air.

 **BANG**

Her eyes widened as this particular bang was louder than all the other's thus far. A plumage of smoke, and dust raced after them from the tunnels they ran from. The vibration travelled from the ground, up through her legs.

"STOP!" Trying to step further in, she felt one hand slip from her arm but the other firmly held her in place. They no longer pulled her along like a child, instead they held their place trying not to let her go. Looking over her shoulder, she tugged her arm again and again, trying to get away from Jin and his torn eyes. "Jin, let me go, Mugen is back there!"

"Mugen is more than capable on his own-"

"I don't care!"

"-do you not trust him?"

Stopping her attempts, she turned to face Jin even more. She slacked her arm, but it was still held up by Jin.

"Trust him?" What kind of question was that? Of course she trusted him. She trusted him more than any person should ever trust another. She relied on him. Even when she couldn't see him, she knew that he was looking out for her. All this time, he was doing things for her. And what had she been doing? Crying? Daydreaming? She had been no help to him at all, if anything, she had made things inexplicably complicated for him. So..what could she do?

"-If you trust him, then we need to go now."

Like snapping a twig, the ground between Fuu and Jin cracked, lowering one side and raising another part. The unknown level below them was beginning to crumble and fall apart due to Mugen's plan. Feeling Jin's grip ease slightly while he diverted his attention to the breaking ground, Fuu pulled her arm down and away from him-breaking his grip.

"Just because I trust him, doesn't mean he doesn't need help!" Turning around, She stumbled a bit but she was quick to stand back up and run full force into the explosive cloud.

Clenching his jaw, Jin watched as the pink disappeared into the crumbling cave. Looking over his back he saw Ishimatsu and the wounded men had continued on, and Sousuke stood there torn on what to do.

"Why would she go? She's so weak." Clenching his hands into fists, his entire body shook- even though at the time, he blamed it on the crumbing cave, his emotions and honour had been shattered. "What can she hope to do in a situation like this?"

"She has a strong sense of duty..." Fixing his glasses, Jin looked at Sousuke. Even though it had been three years since they last saw each other, Jin could see the reflection of the young boy that wanted nothing more than to serve justice standing before him. Even though physically Kawara had aged, it seemed he still had a lot more growing up to do. "-And you have a duty to your followers. Go." Turning around, Jin's long black hair flipped behind him like a cape as he ran into the cloud and disappeared like Fuu.

Coughing, Fuu couldn't afford to stop. Holding her sleeve over her nose and mouth, she tried to filter out everything but the air from getting into her lungs. How much longer until she reached the two tunnels? Another rumble below tossed Fuu against the side of the cave- making her fall on her right shoulder that was still bleeding from the gun wound. Grimacing at the pain, she pushed herself back up onto her bare feet and continued to run. The sharp stones and cracked ground tore at her feet, opening and ripping her skin, and each stride she took she felt dirt and pebbles settle into the openings. And she didn't care.

She wasn't going to stop until she saw him. The forever tanned man that she just couldn't leave alone, nor he her. The unruly dark locks that never seemed to be tamed, even when they got wet- she needed to run her hands through it, she always wanted too but she never had the confidence to do so. The scars across his body, like a roughly stitched pattern that held him together- she needed to feel them under her fingers again. And those eyes that were always acting like they were looking everywhere but her; she needed to feel them on her again. Even though she pretended not to notice, it was hard not to feel a gaze so unique and intense lingering on you all the time- but she pretended not to know, even before she realized what the feelings lingering inside her were. Because she was afraid if she said something, or acknowledged it, that he would stop. And most of all...she needed to hear his voice that boomed louder than any dynamite or gun. In every sense, he was red, like the worn down haori he wore. Red was fierce. Red was strong. Red was-

"Mugen!"

Like a waving flag, the movement of his haori caught her eyes- and before he even realized she was there, she bumped into his back and wrapped her arms around him.

The small warm arms wrapped around his stomach, shallowing the pit his heart had sunk to. He had ended Machii with the last **bang** , and luckily, the smoke from the explosion covered up the sight that would surely scar anyone but him. He refused to let a guy like that die by a blade- something like that could be considered "honourable"- or some dumb ass shit. No..he had different plans for Machii- for the son of a bitch that went after her, that shot her- even if it was in cross fire it couldn't be forgiven. If Fuu and the other's weren't there, he would have made sure Kawara suffered the same fate. After all...part of the deal had been broke- she got hurt, and it was because of Kawara. She jumped her dumb ass in front of that shrimpy bastard and took a bullet for him. What kind of man allowed that? What kind of man allowed a woman to risk her life for his? So, he had a little fun with Machii.

He reached down into the dark pit of his personality that he had long tried to abandon. The dark side of him that was born and created on the Ryuku Islands, and molded and shaped with the help of Mukuro. He took his time. He made sure he felt it. He made sure he wasn't even able to beg for mercy. The dynamite he had in his pockets came in handy after all. He shoved a stick down the son of a bitches throat and watched him gag and struggle as his handless arms tried to pull it out. And he loved it. His crazed eyes watched every moment of it. Even as he lit the stick, and backed up- he didn't look away. And he couldn't look away even after the body exploded into thousands of tiny pieces, painting a large part of the tunnel crimson red.

He didn't look away.

He didn't move.

He couldn't.

The bad blood rushed through his veins like the best kind of drug, and his mind had shut off. That was until, she came for him.

"Mugen, let's go!"

"Fuck, why did you come here?" His shoulders slacked and he unleashed a hellish combination of coughs. The force of each cough bounced his body, and in turn, bounced Fuu's as well. He felt her warmth sink into his body, but the crumbling of everything around him brought him back to reality. That even though he wanted to enjoy it, this wasn't the time, and there never would be. Grabbing her arms off from around him, He turned himself around and pushed her back. "GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE! YA GOT SOME KIND OF DEATH WISH!?"

Closing her hand into a fist, she brought her elbow back, and launched her fist across Mugen's face. Tears built up in her eyes from the pain, which surely hurt her more than it did Mugen. "I COULD ASK YOU THE SAME THING! YOU JERK!"

"What...the..hell?" His face barely moved, and the pain was almost nonexistent, but it was the hardest punch he ever felt in his entire life.

"Why do you act like this?! Why do you act like only one of us can live?! WHY DO YOU THINK THIS WAY?!" Hitting him again and again across the face, he stood there and took it as their surroundings seemed to crumble even more. Every hit got weaker and weaker. Her knuckles turned red despite the lack of impact on his own face. "Why don't you get it?" Grabbing him by collar she tried to bring him down to her level but he only gave in a little bit so she met him the rest of the way by going up on her tippy toes. "-Without you..it's just not the same. And I want to live, not just survive, Mugen!" Standing herself up the last little bit, she planted her lips on his.

Despite the layers of dirt, dust and blood that covered him, she wanted him to understand. This was her choice. This was her life, and she wasn't just going to stand back and let him, or other's decide it for her. She wasn't going to hide behind the sunflowers any more. She wasn't going to use her past or her weakness as an excuse- instead she was going to use them as a reason.

"-Fuck!" Breaking the kiss that surprised him more than her running back in after him, He pushed their bodies off to the side as the ceiling supports around them fell apart, bringing down what seemed to be an endless supply of rocks and other organic material. Holding onto her wrist, he started to run, pulling her with him. "God damn it, I swear you're gonna get us both fucking killed one day!"

Keeping up with him, she could hear everything crumble behind them, like a water fall made of rocks. It scared her, and she knew if she looked back it would all be over. But, she had no reason to look back anymore, because everything she needed was in front of her.

"Jin!"

Mugen blasted past Jin who had slowed his pace and seemed cautious of what may be waiting for him ahead. His head snapped and Mugen and Fuu past him and the sound of the rock water fall got louder and louder. Taking the hint, Jin quickly ran to their sides- without looking back.

Running with Jin on her right, and Mugen at her left, Fuu felt no fear or hesitation. Mugen's calloused, rough hand still held onto her wrist like their lives depended on it. It was like time never stopped three years ago. The three of them were together like it was meant to be, like it should have always been.

"Don't think I'm gonna let you get away with this, four eyes!"

"I feel that there may be a better time to discuss this."

Although Jin didn't yell like Mugen, all of them could sense the urgency in his voice- as it was appropriate given the circumstances. The two of them like this, was like the sweetest music to her ears. Suddenly Mugen pulled back on Fuu's arm as he and Jin came to a stop- the tug on her brought her attention to the two of them and then forwards to what had their attention.

It was where Fuu had faced off with Jin earlier when she managed to get away from him. The cracking ground had finally gave away, revealing the hidden cavern below. Mugen tugged her away from the still crumbling ground, but crumbling ceiling above was beginning to catch up to them.

"Jin-"

"Hn" Nodding his head, Jin backed up and got a running start, he easily cleared the large hole. Turning around, he held out his arms.

Fuu's feet were lifted out from under her as Mugen held her in his arms. One arm cradled her back and the other was under her knees. Normally in a situation like this, he would jump with her in his arms, but, the uneven, shifting ground and the bullet in his leg would make that almost impossible for him.

"Stay loose."

"Okay!" Clenching her eyes, she felt Mugen spin around and around at top speed she could feel herself being hoisted out into the air. She dared not open her eyes, even when she felt completely weightless. With a hard hit, she could feel everything inside her settle back into place. It was a surprisingly soft landing but she heard Jin grunt which was unlike him. Opening her eyes, she saw that even though Jin had "caught" her, Mugen had thrown her with more than enough force that Jin was forced to run backwards to break her fall. She could apologize another time- getting up she rushed to her feet and watched Mugen as he readied himself for his jump.

"Come on Mugen!" Holding out her hands, she stretched her arms as far as they would go- waiting for him to come over and take them in his own.

"I'm comin'!" Bending at the knees, he leaned forwards, touching the tips of his fingers against the ground. He often did this when he really needed to run fast, like when he played baseball and whenever he wanted to skip out on a bill. His inner thigh pulled and ached as the bullet that was still lodged inside was hitting a nerve that sent tingles up and down his leg. With one burst, Mugen put in everything he had, going a record speed. With one foot after another, he barely out ran the falling ceiling behind him- as the lanterns that once illuminated around him were being suffocated and smothered as he launched himself up into the air. His legs continued to move like he was running on nothing, his arms traced circled like he could paddle himself- luckily enough, he didn't need any of that.

Turning herself around, Fuu continued to hold her left hand out behind her as she looked over her shoulder. His arms twisted and reached towards her as his foot was about to land on the remaining ground. Jin, in a similar manner began to ran, slowly turning his head away towards the opening of the cave which was in sight.

With his foot on the ground, Mugen's finger tip brushed against Fuu's. Their finger tips curled, readying themselves to hold onto one another as they ran the last stretch.

But as fate would have it, time ran out.

With one last ear shattering **BANG** , everything around them crumbled into tiny pieces and they fell. The rough warmth that came onto Fuu's fingers from Mugen's was lost as they were jostled in different directions. And just as fast their bodies fell to the cavern below, all three of their consciousness's fell into darkness.

* * *

Like an unfocused lens, everything around her seemed to be blurry. The fine lines of everything around her blurred and fanned out into indistinguishable forms. Someone was talking to her but she couldn't make out the words, or the voice. _'Not right now..'_ Her mind, and her body were still tired, so she closed her eyes again.

 _Standing on the other side of the fallen flower field. Fuu looked out to the endless horizon that she was met with. It was not white and empty like the rest of the world had been. But, she was forced to stop, for there was no more ground for her to move. The white world she had been trapped in, and the red string had brought her here. The ocean stretched out further than she could see- making a light where it met the now colourful sky. Her toes tickled the grassy ledge on which she stood. She curled them over the ledge and felt the exposed and broken ground on the other side of the grassy covering. The cool, salty breeze tickled her skin and made her hair dance in its melody._

 _She could hear the waves crash below where the cliff and ocean connected- colliding together time and time again. The red string somehow reflected the light that the fading sun gave off- melting into the colours of the horizon. With another gust of wind, it was stronger, making her take a step back in fear of being swept away and to the tides below._

 _The salty scent tickled at her nostrils. It mingled with the fresh grass, and the musky dirt. It smelled like...like him. Looking back to the string, it stretched far and long just like the ocean and sky. It was beyond where she could go, at least, she couldn't go there yet._

Opening her eyes again, everything still blurred in her eyes. It wasn't as bright as it was earlier when she opened her eyes for just a moment. The indistinguishable forms had shadows stretching out and onto them, and there was a clear orange hue on everything. Taking a few slow breaths, she heard someone shift at her side. Turning her head she lowered her eyes, to see a woman sitting there with a baby in her arms.

"O..suzu?.."

Her head snapping up, Osuzu's kind eyes instantly filled with tears as she reached out with one hand. Sitting up on her knees, Osuzu inched forwards and cupped Fuu's cheek in her hand. Words didn't come out of her mouth at first, just a hitched breaths between tears and a quivering lip.

"Why..are you crying..Osuzu?..Is Ishimatsu okay?.."

"Oh Fuu..." Biting down on her bottom lip, two large tears streamed down the sides of Osuzu's face. "He's fine..thank you."

"Nhmph.." Smiling Fuu nodded her head a bit. "That's good.." smacking her tongue around, her mouth was incredibly dry and her once soft lips were chapped and withered.

"Water! Water!" Carefully laying her infant down, Osuzu grabbed a small cup of water. Sitting her knees under Fuu's head, Osuzu helped Fuu take small sips of water. "Slowly now.. you don't want to hurt your stomach."

A little too eager for the water, Fuu inhaled some, causing her to cough. With every shake of her body, it hurt even more. Like her entire body was caught in one large vice grip, her sides, stomach, back, legs- everything ached. Before Osuzu could say anyting, Fuu waved her hand. "I'm okay, okay..just went down the wrong tube."

With the water finished, Osuzu moved her legs and readjusted Fuu's head on the futon. "I should tell them all that you're awake. They'll be so relieved!" Picking up her infant, Osuzu stepped around Fuu's legs and started to open the door.

"Wait, Osuzu-"

Gingerly pulling her fingers away from the grooves of the door, Osuzu looked down at Fuu.

"-Where am I? Are we still in Toi?..Where's Jin and Mugen?"

The silence was almost unsettling. The fussy hiccups and slight squeaks from the baby broke the silence. "I'll go tell everyone you're okay." Opening the door Osuzu quickly left- sliding it shut after her.

Staring up at the ceiling, all Fuu could do was wait. The events that felt like they just happened ran through her mind again and again, but there were parts that were blurry.

And then the door slid open.

Turning her head to look at the door, she couldn't help but smile when Jin walked in. Just like when she tended to him when he saved her from the shogun's assassin, his entire upper body was wrapped in white bandages. His top was folded down at his sides and he was using a cane to help maneuver. His glasses were in perfect shape- or else they were new ones, and his hair was pulled back just like it always was. Walking around her feet, to her other side, he walked with a bad limp. Upon looking at his feet, she could see his right foot was also wrapped in bandages that probably extended up his entire leg. Standing at her waist line, Jin sat down the best he could giving his condition. With his knees pressed together, he laid the cane over his lap.

"You're finally awake I see."

"What do you mean, finally?" Slowly bit by bit, Fuu began to sit up. Her clothes had long been changed and her hair draped down over her shoulders. Bracing herself momentarily on her elbows, she saw that both of her arms were wrapped in bandages- atleast the parts she could see. From the resistance of certain movements she could feel that her abdomen and right shoulder were also wrapped tightly. Finally sitting up, her back popped and cracked but she felt like she would fall over at any moment.

"Maybe you should lay down-"

"No, Jin. What did you mean by that? How long have I been out for? A day? Three days?"

"..You passed the three week mark the other day."

"Three..three weeks?!" Like the hammer of reality started pounding down on her, she felt panicked. Her palms would have started to sweat if her body wasn't so dehydrated. "Where are we?" She looked all around, and her breathing was shallow.

"Fuu, calm yourself." Placing a hand on her shoulder, he looked at her with calm eyes.

It wasn't like Jin to touch her like that, but it helped her focus her eyes on one thing- which was him.

"We came back to Hamamatsu about two weeks ago. We're at Kawara's estate."

 _'That would explain why Osuzu is here..'_ Steadying her breathing a bit, it was hard for her to swallow the little bit of water that lingered in her mouth. "I bet Mugen's pretty, huh?"

"Fuu."

"Yes?"

Ishimatsu held his infant in one arm, and his wife in the other. They were all eager for Fuu to regain consciousness, but they knew the pain that would follow. It had been discussed back and forth, who should tell her, and Jin was adamant that it be him. Osuzu was somewhat relieved that it wasn't going to be her, but this was a pain beyond her own comprehension.

 _"They couldn't find him."_

 _"They looked for over a week, but it was time to stop.."_

 _"Mugen's gone, Fuu."_

Jin slowly closed his eyes as he kept himself composed. He had time to think things over, which came with acceptance for how things turned out. But that wouldn't be the case for Fuu; who had practically crumbled before him. Her hands clenched the material of his pants, and her tears soaked into his lap. Her entire body shook, vibrating him.

He had time, and he would give it to her.

Osuzu placed a hand over her mouth as she pressed her face into the chest of her loving husband who calmly and comfortingly rubbed her back. The sounds of Fuu's cries and heart ached stretched out far beyond her room. The men who were still healing from the incident, and those who were pulled out amidst the rubble listened as they had already come to terms with what had happened, but in this instant, they were reminded once again. Her wails didn't go unheard, even to those who hid themselves in the solitude of their room- too ashamed, and embarrassed to come out.

Kawara sat back against the wall as he listened to her pain and agony. Regret, and shame washed over him as she continued to wail. It pulled at his heart, as he wanted to share in her pain. And so, he hurt, because she was hurt. The steady flow of tears that ran down his face wouldn't be able to wash away the decisions he made, nor would it bring him any forgiveness. And so, he sat alone, listening, sharing in her emotions, unsure on when he would be able to face her again.

And so, she ached. She ached long and hard before she could even think of mourning. Because when she started to mourn, it would mean she accepted that he was gone. That under all that rubble and rocks, he had been buried before his time. Buried moments after their fingers touched, with freedom in their sight. There was still many places she wanted to go, walking day and night to get there with him. She wanted to struggle with him by her side- struggle to find something to eat, and to struggle finding a place to sleep. She had already anticipated all these moments they were going to have and she couldn't help but feel cheated. Her life had never gone the way she wanted, or that she expected.

First, her father left her. Second, her mother left on a sunny afternoon. Then her life was ransacked by some vagrant and samurai whom burned down the life she was beginning to make for herself. They travelled with her, they connected with her, and then she cut those connections on her own accord. It was what she told herself she wanted, and she never looked back. Not until that colour waved in front of her eyes again, and she was instantly hooked.

It kept her warm at night. It was there when she closed her eyes and when she opened them. It irritated her to no end, but yet she laughed as she rolled her eyes. It saved her even when she didn't know she needed saving. And now, it was gone.

As the sun faded, and the moon stood high and proud in the night, the pained wails and cries slowly subsided when her eyes fluttered shut.

* * *

The solid wood of her knew sandals clanked against the stairs of the engawa as she tapped them back into place. The straps around her toes were tight, but they would be broken in properly in just a few days. The soft material hugged her perfectly- a gift from Osuzu and Ishimatsu. Her old kimono was beyond repair, so as a thank you, and as a farewell gift, they gave her a new one. It wasn't something she would have picked out for herself, but she was happy it was given to her, because it was beautiful. It was simple in design, without any flashy patterns on it. It was deep purple, and it was held together with a deep blue obi, both of which make her skin look even paler and iridescent than ever before

Smoothing out her hair, Fuu felt the stick that held it together and lightly swatted at the jade bead that dangled at the end with her index finger. She felt it sway with her as she walked out into the sun. Osuzu, Ishimatsu stood there waving, and Fuu looked over her shoulder, smiling and waved back at them. She was sad to be leaving Osuzu and her family, but there was places she still wanted to go, and a special grave she wanted to visit.

She had rejected Osuzu's countless offers to let her stay with them, at Kawara's estate. But, even if things had gone differently, she probably would have given them the same answer. She felt no ill feelings towards Sousuke, even though he blamed himself for what happened. What he said made sense, everything from the agreement that he confessed to, to the hesitation he experienced back in the mine. But it was unfair to him, and to all of them to let him bare such guilt. Maybe in time, after she was done walking countless miles she could return and live her life like Osuzu, but that would be far into the future.

"Bye bye! I'll come again sometime, I promise!" Raising her arm straight above, she waved as large as she could, stepping up on her tip toes so they could see her. Her back was to the gate that was left open by her waiting companion. Fixing the bag that was also given to her, she turned and smile to the glasses clad samurai. Or rather, what was left of a samurai.

Jin stood there, still dependant on the cane, ready to go wherever the road took them. He didn't have any obligation to stay with her, there was no agreement, or score to settle, but he wanted too. Even if they were missing one of their numbers, he felt a sense of completion and inner peace with her presence. He never allowed himself to have any friends in the dojo, and after wards he just wandered from place to place. As much as he didn't want to admit it, Fuu and Mugen had been his only friends- and this time he was going to protect that. His body had paid a hefty price, and perhaps with time, he would heal more and he could walk without the support of the finely crafted cane.

Rushing to Jin, Fuu hooked her thumbs in the bags straps and played with the weight. "Ready to go?"

"Hn." Nodding his head, Jin turned and Fuu followed.

The large gates of the Kawara estate closed behind them, and so they walked. Like the play button had been pushed, their lives resumed. Fuu talked and hummed songs, as Jin replied with one word answers, or something far more philosophical than she anticipated. There were times when she could hear a familiar tune carry in the air, and it always reminded her of him. Especially when she managed to catch a glimpse of the rising sun.

She used to think the sunset was far prettier than the sun rise. That the colours were somehow far more crisp and defined. But since she had time to think about things, about the reoccurring dream of her sitting on a ledge by the sea, and about Mugen. She realised that the sun rise was far more dear to her heart than she ever knew. That the light, although starts out small, it grows and grows- pushing away all the darkness. The orange, pink, yellow, and most importantly, red hues overpowered everything in their path. It brought on the new day, new opportunities and new chances. The comforting heat that it radiated, pulled her in like an embrace. And so she would sit there, and enjoy it whenever she could. Because she knew.

She knew that in her dream, where she stood standing, staring into the sunset- that the red string was still connected. The string stood out far and long beyond the horizon, into the beautiful colours that brought on the new day.

She knew that one day she could join him, and they could bask in the warmth of each other's arms. One day, she could go to him;

to the Land of the Rising Sun.

* * *

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